Doctor Who - Day of the Doctor AU
by Janus2
Summary: An AU of DOTD with no John Hurt war Doctor and more reference to the classic series and the darkness and suffering of the Time War seen for real, dark Doctor. DISCONTINUED
1. The Name of The Doctor end

**Doctor Who – The Day of the Doctor AU**

This is an AU I decided to write to feature Paul McGann in the place of John Hurt, warning, if you don't like dark Doctor look away now.

The Interludes are designed to function as prequels for the events, most feature events during the Time War, each one is not necessarily in chronological order.

* * *

><p><em>The Doctor looked up and saw the figure in front of him and Clara, the tall figure in the red cloak covered in scorch and soot marks.<em>

"_Who's that?"_

"_Never mind. Let's go back. "_

"_But who is he? "_

"_He's me. There's only me here, that's the point. Now let's get back."_

"_But he's different, why's he turned away" _

"_I said he was me. I never said he was the Doctor. "_

"_I don't understand. "_

"_Look, my name, my real name, that is not the point. The name I chose is the Doctor. The name you choose, it's like, it's like a promise you make. He's the one who broke the promise. "_

_Clara fainted into the Doctor's arms his gangly limbs wrapped around her before pulling her bridal style into his arms._

"_Clara? Clara? Clara! "_

_The Doctor had felt the weight of this on his chest for centuries, so finally his secret escaped._

"_He is my secret."_

_The Doctor looked up as a hollow and bitter voice came from the not-Doctor._

"_I did what I always did, what we've always done, and I'd do it again, for the sake of this universe and any other."_

_The Doctor had to keep the bile down his throat, he could taste the soot and ash in his mouth._

"_What you did was amoral and horrific. It was not in the name of the Doctor!" _

_At this point the Doctor turned to walk away but he could still here the figures retort._

"_That's the point as the Doctor I couldn't fight a war, but I am not the Doctor. I am the Warking, I will fight for the universe at any cost."_

_At this point the not-Doctor, the Warking turned and pulled his hood back to watch the Doctor, the cloak was held up by what must have been golden seal of Rassilon hooks with a golden chain he wore a torn black frock coat a torn waistcoat covered in soot and scorch marks, a shirt with blackened edges and black silk scarf round his neck worn cream trousers covered in stitch marks and hard military boots. His face, the face of the eighth Doctor that would once have been handsome and aristocratic but now was a hardened man who looked as if he'd spent twenty years in the marines before becoming a psycho and was weathered, older and harder, with a large scar from his left forehead down to his right cheek._

**Introducing**

**Paul McGann**

**As**

**The Warking**


	2. Castlist

**Day of the Doctor AU castlist**

**8th Doctor/ Warking** - Paul McGann

**10th Doctor - **David Tennant

**11th Doctor - **Matt Smith

**Donna Noble - **Catherine Tate

**Clara Oswald/Commander Arla - **Jenna Coleman

**K-9 - **John Leeson

**Romana III- **Juliet Landau

**Romana II- **Lalla Ward

**Narvin - **Sean Carlson

**Lord Rassilon - **Don Warington/Timothy Dalton

**Darkel - **Lynda Bellignham

**Janartis - **Charlie Ross

**Maxil - **Colin Baker

**The Woman - **Claire Bloom

**Thalia - **Elspet Gray

**Mathias - **Stephen Perring/ Joe dixon

**Neeloc - **Stuart Piper

**Daleks - **Nicholas Briggs

**Irving Braxiatel - **Miles Richardson

**Captain Jack - **John Barrowman

**Sarah Jane - **Elisabeth Sladen

**Mickey Smith - **Neol Clarke

**Martha Jones - **Freema Agemen


	3. Chapter 1 - The Battle of Kasterborous

**The battle of Kasterborous**

On the last day, the last day of Gallifrey, the last day of the last Great Time War a single time ship speed through the fire and death, a single ship of neither side, a ship of the last survivors of their kind, another group affected by the war of two groups of intangible and meaningless gods.

"My lord eternal we are nearing the edge of the distortion field," the ships pilot said turning back to the being behind her, once they'd been the gods of the universe, Time, Death and Pain. But not anymore, the universe was aflame the war was devastating the whole of space and time, the eternal halls had burnt, and the Eternals were now running scared on a space ship away from the wall of suffering, destruction and death.

The vessel lurched back, the Eternals extended their senses back to 'hear' and 'see' the roar of a TARDIS as a massive orange sphere blasted and covered in scorch marks speed towards them.

"The Time Lords have got us,"

"Can we escape?"

The pilot shook her head she had no way to stop them.

"I don't know…"

"_Put your engines to a vortex resonation of 4.579 chronons per Picosecond,"_

The voice was hollow and bitter and come from the figure in the red cloak, the Eternals looked in disbelief, for they knew who was there.

"_Now!"_

The figure roared raising a gun at the pilot; she turned to her commander before obeying the man in the red cloak. The ship instantly moved forward away from the moving sphere.

The man pulled his cloak hood back to see the face of the eight Doctor as the Warking the same as he'd be seen in the Doctor's time stream centuries later, exactly the same except the scar which the man before them lacked.

"You need to hurry out of this system immediately the last of the Daleks are massing for the final assault, as he spun to leave a voice boomed through the ship.

"**I am commander of Presidential Quadrun 300. You cannot outrun this war TARDIS. Further vessels from the fleet are already at intercept positions in real-space and tangential time routes on all statistical possibilities. Doctor you can save these people, just surrender."**

The Warking didn't stop he walked to his TARDIS as the Time Lords destroyed the vessel around them, the Warking knew why the Time Lords wanted him, temporal correction, Rassilon wanted him to be a good little guard dog, well not on my life he thought. A millennia ago at the start of the war he would have turned and tried to help them, but not anymore, he is not the Doctor…

* * *

><p>The Commander of the war TARDIS watched as the last of the Eternals died, she showed no compassion, but then backed away in fear as a blue box cleared the wreckage.<p>

"Commander of Presidential Quadrun 300." You want death and destruction, I'll give you death and destruction," The voice was barely a whisper but sent shivers of terror down her spine. She spun to the six pilots at the central console.

"Destroy that TARDIS no…"

She could never finish her sentence, the Doctor watched on the overhead scanner as the war TARDIS exploded in the line of site of the TARDIS weapons system, the dull brass spike covered in concentric brass rings, the Doctor smiled briefly before speeding back towards the centre of the fire and death, in the distance he could see the millions of Dalek ships and same number of Time Lord craft fighting, the two ancient suns of Kasterborous casting a feeble glow compared the flash of weapons and glinting metal.

* * *

><p>As the TARDIS sped into battle it was observed, at the centre of the battle a massive Dalek saucer fired two Timeonic fusion weapons at a triumvirate of war TARDIS, they never stood a chance as the planet sized spheres exploded.<p>

"**THE-DOCTOR-IS-DETECTED-HIS-TARDIS-IS-MOVING-ON-A-TANGENTIAL-COURSE-TOWARDS-GALLIFREY"**

The Dalek emperor turned as the Dalek reported this development, the Doctor, or the Warking as he called himself now was a one man army with him the Time Lords might actually win the war.

The emperor roared it's orders.

"**DESTROY-HIM-NOW"**

But it was too late; the TARDIS phased straight through the transduction barriers.

* * *

><p>On Gallifrey between the mountains of Solace and Solitude Rassilon entered the Presidential quarters, he absentmindedly fingered the sash around his neck he looked up in surprise and fear as the lights failed and a TARDIS roared into existence, the feared blue box of the destroyer of worlds materialised in his office. Into the darkness crept the Warking the cloak seemed to be glowing a blood red colour of its own accord as he moved closer to the retreating Rassilon he raised his right hand to choke the life from the legend of the darks times.<p>

"You think you are the saviour of our people, you think you can win the Time War, hah! You Lord Rassilon are nothing more than a joke, a self-serving coward who despite what he believes shall die!"

The Warking said these words as he choked the Lord Rassilon pulling the sash from him and throwing him across the room. The Doctor then pulled the gun from his pocket before shooting Rassilon, the golden glow of regeneration started, he never looked back as he entered his old TARDIS and leaving the cowering lord Rassilon.

* * *

><p>Across the planet the transduction barriers collapsed as a war TARDIS collided with the barrier and a thousand Daleks swarmed down to attack Arcadia, Gallifrey's second city.<p>

The initial bombardment shattered the glass dome over the citadel, gun placements instantly opened fire from across the cityscape.

_So it begins,_thought the Warking holding a large Time Lord anti-Dalek weapon with a frock coat full of quantum grenades a sonic screwdriver in his trouser pocket and a pair vortex guns attached to the waistcoat and obscured by the black frock coat he now had buttoned up. He looked behind him not to see the blue box of his TARDIS instead the sturdy body of Compassion the sentient type-103 TARDIS, she walked over to him with a pleading expression.

"There has to be another way" she said, begging him as she always had since she permanently joined the war two centuries ago.

_There was no other way,_the Warking thought, he knew she'd follow him so he pulled the red cloak around him, activated a personal force field before pulling his hood up and leaping down into the fray ready to fight and die for his home world and the rest of the universe.

He knew she would follow him; _Inter arma enim silent leges _the Warking's mantra repeatedly came to light.


	4. Chapter 2 - The Fall of Arcadia

**The Fall of Arcadia**

Hours later the Time Lords tried valiantly to hold the planet, but it was not going well, in Arcadia twenty saucers fired down on the cityscape as people ran, flak batteries fired on the saucers taking them down one by one, but it wasn't enough.

A group of soldiers desperately tried to move a group of civilians, children, into an old battered type fifteen TARDIS, anything to get them safe, however it wasn't to be, five Daleks flew over they cast a quick glance down before firing their weapons, the soldiers fired their ineffectual patrol guns up at the attacking creatures.

The Daleks moved on, less than a second after they'd seen them the civilians were little more than corpses.

Fifty Dalek saucers of the largest size, each eight kilometres in diameter fired their weapons of the glass dome of the citadel of Arcadia. Continuous blue beams and smaller pulses leapt forth, exploding against the invisible shields, instantly red beams of energy flowed back towards the Dalek ships.

As they blurred across the outer hull glowing spheres of white superheated gas formed along the end of the beam, dark black scorch marks showed the beams path. The beams were followed by a series of glowing blue null space torpedoes, on some of the ships they proved effective as the quantum fluctuations and super string vibrations stopped on detonation releasing a torrent of energy directly from dimensional de-sitter space, explosions ravaged the Dalek ships, but those with more power left in the shields merely took damage.

On the streets of the city Gallifrey burnt, soldiers deserted their positions an ran, through it all Commander Arla held onto her staser rifle, the battle had lasted for hours and showed no sign of letting up. As she raised her gun once more she felt a heavy object crash into her side, looking up she saw a red clothed figure raise a large artillery weapon, firing his gun, a zed-neutino catalyser, the beam of energy phased towards the Dalek, instantly cancelling out the Dalek as it dissolved into dust.

Turning around the Warking looked to Arla.

"If you want to get out of here alive follow me," his offered his hand to the soot covered Time Lady, she cautiously took the offered hand as he pulled her up while replacing her staser rifle. "Warking to Compassion; how many Dalek ships are inbound?"

TARDIS engines roared as masses of craft headed up to meet the never ending torrent of Dalek ships, Compassion lead the charge, torpedoes and red beams of energy sliced through space, in desperation she threw herself on kamikaze runs. Her 'skin' felt terrible as she smashed through ship after ship, she saw a trio of Dalek stealth ships come up behind her, the three ships began to generate a chronon loop while a phalanx of ships emptied their offensive payload at her. Despite her best efforts her shields were failing, _80%... 70%... 60%._

"_Warking to Compassion; how many Dalek ships are inbound?__"_the embittered voice came over her communications systems.

"Mind your own business you overzealous Time Lord." Compassion sent back with as much venom as she could muster.

"_Mind your own business you overzealous Time Lord.__"_He Warking cringed at Compassion's tone.

"Warking," Arla brought him back to the present as a special weapons Dalek came around the corner, the Warking looked to the oncoming danger while pulling out a small controller, as the Dalek closed space began to shift and shimmer as the N-form materialised all over the Dalek instantly destroying it.

"You were saying," the Warking had a confident tone; his eyes alight with arrogance in a pose that would seem more like the Master to any previous Doctor.

"Nothing," Arla said surveying the devastation around them.

The Warking slipped the controller for the N-form back into his pocket while folding the blood red cloak backwards.

"Then I suggest we hurry up, a friend of mine has got something from the slaughterhouse that might just sway the balance." The Warking immediately began to run; Arla briefly looked back before following.

Compassion fell, a blue ring of chronons is a loop wrapped around her as she fell, all of her systems failed in succession, weapons, engines and shields were useless, she twisted and writhed throughout all of the dimensions she could as the ground rushed to meet her.

All her efforts began to pay off when she felt some power trickle back into her systems, diverting everything to her shields she pushed outwards, as the loop broke she reared up with everything she had.

The Warking and Arla ran through the streets, the Warking never stopped shooting, when the zed-neutrino catalyser took a hit the Warking just dropped it and fired off his two vortex guns.

"Stop," the Warking whirled to face a Time Lord soldier.

"Maxil, is this enough bloodshed for you?" the Warking levelled one of the Vortex guns at the old guardsman, he still remembered back when he was the Doctor during the second Omega crisis.

"Bloodshed you could have prevented," Maxil coldly said, his staser pointed at the Warking's head. "You and the Commander will come with me to the Capital for temporal correction."

"No," the Warking said abruptly in a tone that wold have any sergeant major green with envy, for just a second Maxil hesitated, that was all the time Arla and the Warking needed surging forward.

The Warking grabbed the staser with a savage grip, without giving a second he dragged his arm around his back, Maxil cried in pain as his shoulder was pulled from its socket. While at the same time Arla took hold of his neck and twisted while the Warking pulled a dagger from under his frock coat and put it through his two hearts as the Time Lord fell down to the ground with no regeneration.

"Was that really necessary?" Arla asked looking at her erstwhile companion.

The Warking looked up at her.

"Maybe not, I just wish it was Rassilon," the Warking looked darkly at Arla, his eyes filled with guilt and shame.

As he started up Arla ran to keep up with the trailing cloak.

"What happened?" Arla asked as she ran to keep up with the taller Time Lord's stride. "Once you were the Doctor, a two term President of Gallifrey, I saw you with that scarf and the sash of Rassilon. What happened?"

"This is the 1,257th year of the Time War, Rassilon is now the President of Gallifrey, but do you remember what happened to President Romana?" the tone was full of melancholy.

"From what I remember the High Council gave her a vote of no confidence?" Arla asked unsure, all information of Rassilon's return was classified.

The Warking laughed, it was a hollow and humourless sound.

"Yes I expect that's how Rassilon would want people to think about it," turning to look at her he continued. "Rassilon and a group of three high council members arranged a meeting with President Romana and vice President Narvin. I accompanied them, I saw it, he assassinated her, a sword right between her hearts, the Doctor died in there, and I was what was left, the Warking."

Trailing off the Warking looked on in shame as the blue box of the type forty TARDIS materialised, the battered blue box was marred by scorch marks and many of the windows were smashed.

Opening the door the Warking rushed in followed by Arla.

"_Master,__"_

The Warking smiled a little as the small robot dog came towards him, it gun moving out of his mouth.

"_Alert intruder, Master, shall I eradicate her?__"_

"No K-9 leave her be," the Warking gave the simple instruction while crossing to the scared and buckled wood console, the hulk of the room once filled with memories; books, clocks and photos was now a place to hold wreckage and scars from the last thousand years of war. "Have you got it?"

"_Affirmative Master,__"_K-9 said referring to the black cuboid wired into the console.

"What is that?" Arla asked looking at the device which was obviously a weapon of some kind.

"It's well, something called scorched Earth, the device generates an artron pulse through higher dimensional planes to a tachyon matrix that cycles in an overload phase." The Warking said absent mindedly as he adjusted the controls to open the PA.

"_This is Arcadia command__…__ we being__…"_the desperate sounding officer was interrupted by the sound of multiple shots from a Dalek weapon and the sound of bubbling and sizzling flesh.

"_EXTERMINATE, ALL TIME LORDS IN THIS VICINITY, WE NOW HAVE A BEACHHEAD ON GALLIFREY.__"_

The Warking swiftly cut the link and turned to Arla and K-9 in succession as he spoke.

"Arla, put us into temporal orbit. K-9 after you tell me how to activate the weapon contact Compassion and have the TARDIS fleet retreat."

Compassion pulled herself back up to the edge of the battle, her shields and weapons severely depleted when she heard K-9's signal, opening her telepathic circuits to maximum she called to the TARDIS fleet and pulled them back as the fires started.

The Fires burnt from the fabric of the universe itself, as charged pieces of the web of time ignited and fell from the sky. Daleks and Time Lords alike burnt in eternal agony, dying then living and dying again for the rest of eternity, Arcadia had fallen…


	5. Chapter 3 - In Memoriam

**In Memoriam**

_The face sneered into view; Rassilon brought the curved dagger down onto the battered console._

"_You won__'__t do it Doctor!__"_

"_I must1__"__ the Doctor shouted back over the cacophony. __"__If I don__'__t then all of history will be undone.__"_

_With that the Doctor kicked out sending Rassilon back, the Doctor raised his own dagger and without a second thought rushed forward and cut off Rassilon__'__s left hand before snatching the staff and snapping it on his left leg as he turned back to the device on the other side of the console and pressed the tine white point star into the alcove. Then there was a flash as bright as the sun for the merest moment, annihilation so profound it stretched deep into the past and far into the future. Then Gallifrey was gone._

The Doctor woke screaming, the nightmares never changed, it was always those moments from the Time War when the Doctor had chosen the lesser of two evils. Getting out of his bed he pulled off his scarlet red Gallifreyan robes and the dress shirt tie and blue suit as he made his way to the large double doors emblazoned with the seal of Rassilon.

The Doctor ran his hands through his hair as he looked up and saw Donna waiting for him.

"You alright space man?" Donna looked him in the eye, the bags under her eyes showed her lack of sleep.

"Yep, I'm always alright" the Doctor tried to smile as he popped his 'p', but it was too early for him to even try to hide his emotions.

Donna just looked at him.

"I think we should go somewhere nice, who about the Eye of Orion?" the Doctor started for the console room full of maniac energy.

Running loops around the organic console completely unlike the worn wooden console that had remembered in his dream. The console was far larger and in order to maintain control the Doctor was in constant motion.

"Donna left hand down!" the Doctor called as the TARDIS rolled to the side, Donna dutifully moved forward and put her left hand down on the control the Doctor had shown her.

Coming down with a crash the Doctor surged forward and grabbed his trench coat, as he turned around he looked at Donna.

"The Eye of Orion is the most tranquil planet in the universe; well it was for a long time before…" the Doctor sniffed back tears. "And it is once more."

Stepping forth Donna was immediately struck by the deathly silence and peaceful feeling sounding the hill top and medieval ruins, walking forward she saw the Doctor sitting before a hexagonal pillar, kneeling the Doctor reached forward and traced a series of names engraved in both English and circular Gallifreyan:

_Irving Braxiatel_

_Salyavin_

_Leela_

_The Rani_

_Magnus_

The Doctor looked and the names, friends he'd known, Donna's hand briefly touched his shoulder in wordless support, ever since the War he came here once every year. Never with Rose, but when he'd been with Martha she'd pushed him and the Doctor had told her some of the details of the battle.

Reaching upwards he cleared some vegetation to show another engraving.

_Here in memorial until the End of Time are the last remnants of those noble Time Lords of Gallifrey who died in the Last Great Time War not just for Gallifrey, but for all of creation._

"The battle wasn't fought over this planet," the Doctor looked up into the night sky to show Donna an area of pulsing blue and red area of energy. "That is all that remains of the telac Galactic cluster, more than fifty Galaxies destroyed at once by Timeonic fusion device, well I say destroyed, what I really mean is whipped from existence, the entire cluster of Galaxies never existed. This is one of the places where the War was actually tame by comparison to some of the other fronts."

The Doctor winced as he saw Donna's fury and outrage in her eyes.

"Tame! An entire Galactic cluster and you call that tame! I don't know what kids you've been hanging around with but I'm not having you wallow in what, your victories!" Donna shouted at the Doctor. "How many people died here in this battle?"

"Trillions, possibly more," the Doctor said, his eyes clouded and filled with guilt and darkness. "But that's why I go on, in their name! Donna I come here to remind myself of why I carry on so that their deaths mean…"

The Doctor just stopped, the wind stopped.

Donna looked around to find an elderly woman with parted black hair and specks of grey reaching back; she walked forward to stand over the Doctor before looking at Donna.

"Be kind, what the Doctor saw would have broken others."

"Who are you to say that, trillions died!" Donna said angrily in expiration.

"I was lost once, a long time ago, the Doctor died here, what you see is the man reborn in penance for his actions."

"What do you mean?"

"The Doctor is a legend woven throughout time, as the champion of Time and justice. A two term President of Gallifrey who refused to be pinned down by the needs of duty," the Woman stepped forward. "You are one of the Doctor's best friends, be there for him and remember as he won't be able to."

"… Something," Donna spun back as the Doctor continued as if nothing had happened. "Are you alright?"

The Doctor got to his feet and stood before her looking into her eyes, as Donna prepared to answer a golden tunnel of light began to form…


	6. Interlude - The Death of the Doctor

Interlude

The Death of the Doctor

(Year 789 of the Last Great Time War)

"…of the House of Lungbarrow do commit Lord Braxiatel of the House of Lungbarrow, Lord Salyavin of the House of Firebrand, Lady Leela of the House of Deeptree, Lady Ushas of the House of Warpsmith and Lord Magnus of the House of Fordfarding to the flames and let their souls live forever on in the Gardens of Remembrance in the Matrix," the Doctor trailed off tears ran down his cheeks, he felt the entire weight of his Time Lord robes and collar, looking down at the assembled survivors amongst the wreckage of the Eye of Orion. The Doctor turned to the new monument to the deceased who died in the battle.

The Doctor returned to his TARDIS and slumped into the arm chair, the TARDIS control room around him, a steampunk Victorian heaven, was heavily damaged, floor boards were cracked and wires poked through, the auditorium was cracked. Taking a cup of earl grey tea the Doctor pulled up the latest battle plans from the high council.

A bleep from the console brought him out, crossing over to the ruined console he activated a holographic interface showing a series of old High Gallifreyan circles, nodding in response the Doctor passed out of the doors.

"Admiral Neeloc," the Doctor walked with purpose to the Time Lord second in command. "I've been summoned by the Presidency, and in accordance with protocol I'm putting you in charge here."

Neeloc nodded in response, the Doctor rounded on him as soon as his junior gave him the affirmative and headed straight to the TARDIS.

* * *

><p>Romana and Narvin stood inside the Presidential suite as the TARDIS materialised, Narvin unconsciously straightened as the Doctor emerged now in a typical green velvet frock coat and finery.<p>

"Madam President, Vice President," the Doctor said while nodding at each of them in turn as a show of respect. "What exactly is going on, I was hoping we'd be able to plan on offensive to take advantage of Dalek losses-, what's wrong?"

"They tried to give her a vote of no confidence," Narvin calmly said in perfect monotone.

"Who?" the Doctor's glare and voice implied that those who stood against his President would be in more peril than soldiers at the front.

"Darkel, Mathias and Thalia," Romana said plainly brushing some of her dark hair back.

"How was the vote?"

"In favour of Romana, just," Narvin said looking down at his shoes.

An overhead chime suddenly rung as the PA system activated.

"_Madam President, My Lord Vice-President Councillors Darkel, Mathias, Thalia and a special envoy are here to see you.__"_

Romana looked at Narvin and the Doctor in turn before looking to the door.

"Send them in," Romana said as she composed herself and Narvin and the Doctor closed ranks around her.

The Doctor suppressed a shudder as he saw the three councillors and the envoy enter.

"I wanted to talk to the Presidency alone," Darkel said focusing her glare on the Doctor.

"Anything that can be said to me can be said to the Doctor," Romana said back equally icy.

"And since when did you want to be arrested for treason?" the Doctor asked smiling as he walked forward in unison with Narvin as he took hold of the handle of his staser.

"I have no idea to what you are referring, the vote of no confidence is a perfectly legal practice," Darkel said smiling insincerely.

"We're not talking about your attempt to sow discord amongst the council…" Narvin started as he and the Doctor crossed to the side of the cloaked figure of the special envoy.

"… We're talking about bringing an individual from the Faction Paradox to the Presidential chamber." The Doctor said as he drew the staser and pulled the hood back to reveal the bone carapace mask of a cousin of the Faction Paradox. "Identify yourself Faction criminal."

The voice that came back shocked all three legitimate Time Lords in the room, while Darkel's retinue smiled.

"I'm no Faction criminal Doctor, why I've held the same office as you and the Lady Romanadvoratrelundar," the Doctor's grip on the staser increased as the cousin pulled off the mask and threw it to the side to show the features of the Lord Rassilon, one of the triumvirate founders of Time Lord Society. "For I am conqueror of Yssgaroth, overpriest of Dronid, First Earl of Prydon, Patris of the Vortex, Ravager of the Void and President of Gallifrey from the time of our civilisations great foundation. I am the Lord Rassilon and I have returned to guide my children!"

"Very nice of you but we're doing fine," Romana said without missing a beat, distinctly unimpressed. "Narvin, Doctor please escort the councillors and the Lord Rassilon from my office-"

"This isn't your office, this is the President's office," Rassilon said trying to sound impressive.

"And Romana is the President, now Lord Rassilon you will accompany me and Narvin out of the President's office or I will arrest you and place you in the lowest dungeon in the capital." The Doctor threatened stepping right into Rassilons personal space, his staser still levelled at his head. "Just give me an excuse."

"How dare you this is our saviour returned to save us, Romana is unfit to rule Gallifrey." Darkel said outraged at the attitude Narvin and the Doctor had in their absolute devotion to Romana.

"Narvin keep the Lord Rassilon covered," the Doctor smiled as he walked to stand before Darkel. "And why is that what experience does Rassilon have that Rassilon lacks? Please do tell?"

"She has no experience leading a war against impossible odds," Darkel said venomously. "Rassilon fought against the Vampires and Yssgaroth and the cult of Pythia."

"Firstly Romana lead and won the civil war against Pandora, two when in E-space she successfully fried the Tharils and helped them rebuild a society despite universal opposition to them." The Doctor stepped forward looming into Darkel's personal space. "Now Rassilon is actually responsible for letting the Yssgaroth and Great Vampires into this universe in the first place leading to the war and two the cult of Pythia was already falling before Rassilon did anything."

"Doctor, look at this objectively, Rassilon is our only hope," Thalia spoke drawing the Doctor's attention to her.

Looking right to her the Doctor started again.

"Are you so unfamiliar with our history, you know this man betrayed Omega trapping him in a black hole as he was jealous of his popularity. He also forced the Other into committing suicide when he tried to liberalise Rassilon's power base." The Doctor turned back to Rassilon. "Rassilon is the worst of our kind to ever live; his is responsible for more crimes than even the Master and has been given the mercy of leaving this room alive. _I strongly advise he take it._"

"Why not?" Rassilon asked the Doctor.

"Because I am a loyal Time Lord and will stop you," the Doctor looked into Rassilon's eyes causing the 'legendary' figure to squirm in fear.

At that moment the doors opened and a five man security detail came in, the Doctor didn't look to them, neither did Romana.

"Ah guard commander take these people into custody," Romana ordered looking down at the situation holograms.

But Narvin did look to them and started as he realised exactly who the Guard Commander was, as such he was too slow as Rassilon drew a long curved dagger, and ancient ceremonial Gallifreyan weapon, and sliced at his side narrowly missing the main arteries for his right heart, as he cried out in agony Romana pulled on the Gauntlet of Arcalia and rushed to her vice Presidents side.

The Doctor watched in horror as Rassilon brought the blade down between her two hearts, raising his staser to fire the Doctor was caught off guard as Mathias crashed into his side.

"_No!__"_the Doctor called out in rage as Romana fell down to her office floor, losing all perspective and control the Doctor lashed out, spinning he grabbed Mathias' head and slammed him into the wall with all his might before coming about, he was vaguely aware of hitting Darkel, hard, she probably broke something, but the Doctor was undeterred.

He raised the staser and fired on a low power setting smiling as Rassilon's hand was vaporised, the skin bubbled and burnt as Rassilon fell back in agony.

Without missing a beat the Doctor kept Rassilon covered as he crossed to Romana and Narvin.

Romana was in a bad way, her face was pale and drawn and the light faded from her eyes, the Doctor took a trickle of blood from the wound and put it to his lips.

"The blade was laced with a regenerative inhibitor, I'm so sorry Narvin." The Doctor said, his fury lost as a sense of failure and guilt flooded his hearts, before his eyes he saw it all, _Sam and the Faction__'__s interference in history, the death of his daughter Miranda, Charley begging him to kill her, C__'__Rizz__'__s death along with Alex__'__s, Lucie__'__s and Tamsin__'__s. The horrors of the war were also mixed in along with the memories of his past incarnations, Adric, Roz, Sara and many others._

"You Lord Rassilon now stand accused of high treason and will be executed!" the Doctor roared as he levelled the staser at Rassilon's head.

"On the contrary Doctor if you take any further action against Rassilon you will be arrested for high treason." The Doctor turned in fury as Maxil stepped forward levelling his own weapon at the Doctor.

"Romana," the Doctor and the others turned shocked at the small and tender voice from Narvin, so unused to the small voice the situation seemed to stop. "Please Romana; I don't think I can go on without you."

Tears streamed down his face as he held Romana in one arm and her hands in the other as he brought them to his lips.

"… Narvin…" Romana breathed weakly as the poisons on Rassilon's blade ravaged what was left of her. "I… love… you… husband."

With that Gallifrey's President died in the arms of her spouse.

"Narvin as emergency protocols stipulate you are now President." The Doctor said, every inch of this body ready to kill Rassilon, Thalia, Darkel, Mathias and all the other traitors on the coup d'etat without any mercy.

"No he isn't, he's a criminal who threatened our President." The lead guard commander stepped forward.

Narvin got up from Romana's corpse as he turned to face the Guard with Murderous rage.

"I gave you a second chance Janartis, I should have left you to die!" Narvin shouted.

"He knows his duty," Darkel said as she pulled herself up, blood smeared across her lips, while clutching her broken ribs.

Narvin turned to her, with no words he grabbed Rassilon's discarded weapon and impaled Darkel through the chest as he reached forward to snap her neck.

"I only wish I could make you suffer as you deserve," Narvin said darkly as Darkel died in his arms.

As Narvin sailed forward to kill his nemesis the Doctor acted quickly and pulled Rassilon in front of him as a shield as he fired on Janartis killing him instantly along with three Guard who fired first.

"Narvin get Romana's body and go inside my TARDIS, we need to get the high council and stop this," trusting Narvin the Doctor began to back toward the TARDIS himself.

"I've lost the Gauntlet!" Narvin cried out.

"Forget it," the Doctor ordered as he threw Rassilon forward firing his staser on a power relay causing an explosion to separate them, he then reached into his breast pocket. "Know this Rassilon, the Doctor died here; he died the moment the blade plunged between the President's hearts."

The Doctor's voice cracked a bit remembering Romana's last words with jealously as he threw a piece of paper to Rassilon's feet, as he entered the TARDIS he turned to look back at Rassilon.

"Know this, I am the Warking now, I will fight for Gallifrey and to win this war, and I will not rest until you are dead and Romana's Presidency is restored!"

He slammed the door as Narvin took off.

Rassilon smiled and pulled the Gauntlet over his right stump where the Doctor vaporised a hand.

"We must head them off with the High Council…"

Rassilon said as he picked up what the Doctor had thrown, he then looked up with horror, as on that photo was the Doctor, his Granddaughter Susan and Alex his great-grandson. It was then that Rassilon realised exactly what this meant, he really had renounced his promise as the Doctor.


	7. Chapter 4 - UNIT on Station

**UNIT on Station**

Clara sat in the empty classroom as one of the duty pupils came in with a note.

"Miss Oswald, this just came in from reception, a call from your Doctor," Clara looked up and thanked the student with a smile as she read the note, it was the Doctor all over. She grabbed her coat and ran from the school, it was past home time anyway as she mounted her motorbike and began to head towards the mar reference.

After riding through London Clara saw the TARDIS in the backdrop, without realising her smile had grown larger she reached the doors and snapped her figures causing the doors to open, she timed the stop perfectly coming to rest by the console.

"Draft," the Doctor calmly said causing her smile as she snapped her figures to close the door, as the doors closed be put down the book, clearly a Time Lord one. "Fancy a week in ancient Mesopotamia, followed by future Mars?"

"Will there be cocktails?"

"On the moon,"

The Doctor smirked at her as they laughed and ran into each overs arms, the Doctor closed his eyes as he buried his head in her hair and breathed in her heavenly, at least to him, scent.

"Missed you" he simply said as the broke apart.

She smiled back at him.

"How's the first day on the job, I remember Ian and Barbra taught at that school?" the Doctor smiled at her, his right arm still around her waist.

"Was alright, takes some getting used to-" Clara stopped as the TARDIS jolted to the side, Clara quickly grasped the only thing in range, that just happened to be the Doctor. "What was that?"

The Doctor struggled against the incline as a mobile began to ring, as he let go of Clara he span across the room to take hold of an old fold up phone.

"Hello,"

* * *

><p>High over the skies of planet Earth on board the <em>Defiant, <em>the _Vallian__t'__s _sister ship, Brigadier General Bambera and Colonel Mace crossed over to UNITs chief scientific officer Dr Kate Lethbridge-Stewart.

"Ma'am, we have to report that the situation has become worse," Mace started handing over a report from Dr Malcom Taylor.

Kate skimmed the report, _someone needed to stop Malcom naming things__…_

"General Bambera, what else have you to report?" Kate looked at the imposing woman who had according to the records encountered the Doctor in his seventh incarnation.

"We have the Doctor's TARDIS,"

Kate nodded as she took out her mobile and entered the number Martha Jones had left for her mobile.

"Doctor, we found the TARDIS in a field,"

* * *

><p>As the Doctor answered the mobile he ran for the doors.<p>

"I know!" he called back as he leaned out of the door frame so Kate could hear the helicopter overhead. "Next time would it kill you to knock?!"

"_Doctor please stay inside, you__'__re being taken to the Defiant, it__'__s a sister ship to the Valiant.__"_

The Doctor grumbled and swore in Gallifreyan as he re-entered the console room.

"So what's going on?" Clara asked standing in front of her bike.

"UNIT, Unified Intelligence Taskforce, we're being taken to one of their aircraft carriers." The Doctor answered as he sat down on the steps.

"What?" Clara was still confused.

"I worked for them in the seventies, or it might have been the eighties, me and the Brig," the Doctor trailed off nostalgia clear in his eyes.

* * *

><p>As the TARDIS was brought in Colonel Mace, General Bambera and Kate Stewart stood to attention as the Doctor and his newest assistant came out of the doors, he took in Mace and Kate before seeing Bambera.<p>

"Winifred Bambera?" the Doctor asked disbelief clear in his tone.

She smiled and stepped forward to shake his hand, which the Doctor took willingly.

However as she stepped back the rows of UNIT soldiers is the trademark red berets saluted him followed by Colonel Mace and Lieutenant Colonel Mike Yates, the _Vallian__t'__s _commanding officer stepped forward.

"So you've done it again?" Doctor, Yates stepped forward.

"Mike? Mike Yates isn't it?" the Doctor breathed a smile across his mouth that didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Yes Doctor and you're getting this salute whether you like it or not," Yates stood to attention and gave the Doctor a full salute while looking him in the eye, the Doctor nodded in response and gave his old fried a proper salute in turn.

"Okay so what's the problem that causes you to pick up my TARDIS instead of picking up the phone?" the Doctor asked thoroughly annoyed with the lack of trust implied in him.

"Doctor, at 08:00 GMT an object entered the solar system at high speed, it appears to be decelerating and will cross the solar system in a few hours, here's a long range photo via telescope." Kate said as she handed over the clipboard, when the Doctor saw the photos he started in fear.

"What is it?" Clara asked as she pushed over his shoulder, on the pictures was the grainy image of a black planetoid marred by scorch marks, but that wasn't what drew the Doctor's fear, as the planetoid was engraved by the great seal of Rassilon…


	8. Chapter 5 - Echoes of events to come

**Echoes of the Events to Come**

The Sky was burnt orange, as the Doctor stood in the mouth of the cave in the side of the Mountain of Solitude the first of Gallifrey's twin suns rose from behind Solace. The golden fiery light reflected perfectly off of the glass dome forming a rainbow of colours as the silver towers glistened, as tears streamed down the Doctor's eyes the second sun rose, the silver leaf trees that surrounded the Citadel, were lit up like a forest on fire and as a morning breeze swept through the valley the sand was brought up and singing filled the air as the wind rustled the trees.

"I thought I'd find you here," the Doctor turned round, the smiled still firmly on his lips as he faced Braxiatel, like the Doctor Brax wasn't in standard Time Lord robes but was dressed in human clothes, an immaculate shirt, tie, waistcoat and suit jacket.

"Can you believe that some Time Lords have never seen this vista?" the Doctor asked as Brax sat down beside him amongst the sand and dust, the Doctor did likewise.

"No, I still remember when I showed you this place," Brax smiled nostalgically as did the Doctor. "You'd just looked into the Untempered Schism and were so scared, and then you saw the sunrise and you just smiled."

"Yeah I remember Brax," the Doctor sighed looking down at the Citadel. "Alright, I'll tell you what happened, I was travelling with Mary, Mary Shelley, and she just kept reminding me of Scarlette."

"The woman you married in 1783?" Brax asked, not needing clarification.

"I left Samson and Gemma in Vienna, and I don't know if I want to go and get them," the Doctor said, smiling once more he looked down at the Citadel. "I spent a thousand years rebuilding the planet, before leaving again, and I just keep feeling that I'm too old for gallivanting around the universe."

"And do what, sit here watching the Capital, sitting on the high council?" Brax asked completely incredulous. "Doctor, Gallifrey is forever in your debt, and you will never be forgotten, but go out there and see the universe. In fact let me give you some help."

Brax then handed to the Doctor a silver disc emblazoned with the seal of Rassilon. The Doctor took the disc and twirled it in his hands before looking questioningly at Brax.

"We intercepted a transtemporal transmission fragment, it seems to be meant for you," Brax stopped taking a deep breath. "It's from Sarah Jane."

Those two words were enough to break the Doctor's gaze on the Citadel.

"Where is she, what's happened?" the sense of urgency was apparent in his voice, even after all the years since he'd last seen her.

"We intercepted the signal in an area protected by an occlusion field, Romana thought it best if you were to investigate." Brax said slowly and gently. "Your TARDIS has already been primed and is ready for departure."

"You just assumed my agreement!" the Doctor responded, trying to sound angrily, but unable to hid the fact that he was unable to feel anger in that place with Brax.

"No, by a Presidential order your TARDIS is always primed and ready to go," Brax simply said smiling down at him.

The Doctor smiled.

"Is this just to get me off the planet for a while?" the Doctor looked questioningly at Brax. "Because if it is, it's working."

The Doctor pulled himself to his feet and brushed off the velvet frock coat and trousers before offering a hand to Brax who took it willingly.

"Scenic route?" Brax asked the Doctor looking down the ledge to the hourglass citadel.

The Doctor smiled and nodded in agreement.

* * *

><p>Doctor looked around the TARDIS console room, he'd already gone over the CIA data on the signal and its origin coordinates, to say it wasn't much was an understatement. Still an old friend had called for help and the Doctor would run to answer it.<p>

The TARDIS engines roared to a crescendo before stopping and the Doctor instantly felt discomfort, somewhere out there was a fixed point in time, a _fact, _that's something that's never meant to happen. Still he'd come this far. Pressing the control to open the massive double doors the Doctor rushed out to greet whatever awaited him.

* * *

><p>Jack paced around the dark corridor; out of the corner of his eye he could see Sarah cover a scow, however Mickey was more vocal.<p>

"Stay still for just a moment will you!" Mickey called out in exasperation.

Jack grumbled in answer but did sit down beside Sarah.

"Look, I've already said I'm sorry, can we just drop it?" Jack asked, his voice rose slightly.

"Well since we're all trapped here…" Mickey said sarcastically, his mouth spread to an insincere smile.

Before Jack could counter a wheezing and groaning filled the air as the TARDIS took shape, however when they saw the subtle differences to the most recent version they stood back, as such they were unsurprised when a very different man came out.

He was wearing polished black shoes, cream trousers, a collarless shirt, cravat, waistcoat and a green velvet frock coat.

"Hell- gah!" the Doctor gasped in agony as he looked at Jack. "What in the name of Rassilon happened to you?"

"Doctor?" Sarah asked stepping forward to look at him. "Did we meet again after you were called back home?"

"No," the Doctor said averting his eyes from Jack.

"Then we're from you're future," Sarah said hesitantly.

"Okay, sorry just to be clear you are all companions of a future version of me, which I assume isn't present otherwise we wouldn't have intercepted the signal on Gallifrey-" the Doctor looked startled as Martha interrupted him.

"Gallifrey?"

"It's my homeworld, surely I must have mentioned it, I've been staying at home for a while," the Doctor said, unable to ignore the glances between his future companions. "Okay, where are we, the Celestial Intervention Agency wasn't able to find out much about this place."

"Well, we detected a large planet sized ship entering the solar system, I tried to use my vortex manipulator to get here," Jack started glaring at Mickey. "But we hit some kind of field and we ended up with some degree of temporal displacement and we ended up here."

"Alright, well I'm sorry this is going to be hard, every instinct in my body wants me to run from you, still..." trailing off the Doctor took in his surroundings. "The CIA data wasn't very thorough and Brax wanted me off planet, so lets investigate."

The Doctor smiled before looking around, he then stood completely straight with his hands behind his back with his eyes closed, after a deep breath he turned to face a dark recess in the hallway.

"This way," the Doctor smiled as he pulled out his sonic screwdriver, he then stopped and examined the panel before placing a hand over it, then the Doctor heard massive locks sliding back. "Not again…"

"Doctor?" Sarah asked sideling up to him. "What is it?"

"I've been here before, metaphorically speaking anyways," the Doctor said as he took a torch out of his coat pocket handing it to Jack. "Meeting people and seeing events from my future, it didn't go well…"

Turning round to the others he took charge, using the same voice the Doctor had learnt to use during high council meetings he took authority.

"Jack, you stay at the back, Mickey you're with me, Sarah and Martha stay in the middle." Without waiting for a response he strode into the darkness.


	9. Chapter 6 - Memories of Days long past

Memories of Days long past

"Who are you calling?" Clara asked as the Doctor held the phone to his ear.

"Some friends of mine, but there's no reply," turning on his feet he rushed up to the Defiant's control deck. "Colonel Mace, has there been anything from Jack, Martha or Sarah Jane?"

"No sir, although I have been able to contact Mr Luke Smith," Mace said looking up from the displays. "He says that Miss Smith had detected the object on the edge of the solar system and that she had contacted Jack Harkness to get on board."

"Doctor!" Kate walked into the luxurious wardroom down the steps from the control deck, turning from the Colonel the Doctor jumped the steps down to stand by Clara's side. "We have just received word from a team in Amsterdam, they've recovered an object that arrived ahead of the… err rouge planet."

"Doctor you recognised it, what does it do?" Clara asked, even under a gaze from her eyes would usually break the Doctor's resolve, but not this time, he swallowed and looked over the room. "Anyone who doesn't have level one security clearance should leave this deck immediately."

Clara looked in shock at the absolute authority in his tone, with a nod from Colonel Mace most of the staff left the room after activating the automatics, the Doctor watched stoically as the UNIT troops filed out, his gaze was like ice as General Bambera sat to the right of Kate and Colonels Mace and Yates took seats across from Clara on Kate's left.

"What I'm about to tell you is just about one of the most closely guarded secrets of the High Council of the Time Lords, and just to be clear I'll only disseminate this information on a need to know basis." The Doctor walked to the steps onto the flight deck and pause, as he watched the blue sky he felt a tad homesick, _the sky__'__s the wrong colour, _his hearts insisted. "What you are seeing isn't a planet that escaped orbit, it's not like Mondas, what you're seeing is a Time Lord warship."

"Exactly what kind of warship?" Mace was the first to speak.

"Is it dangerous?" Bambera asked.

"I say warship, what I mean is unmanned weapons delivery system," the Doctor turned to face them. "It's armed and designed to fly at velocities just under the speed of light to their targets through space and not time, their so low tech as to be undetectable."

"What weaponry are we talking about Doctor?" Yates asked as he tried to look the Doctor in the eye, but the Time Lord continuingly shifted his view.

"Could be anything, a blackstar, the Cold, Validium, but whatever it is will probably be a planet killer of some kind" the Doctor admitted, and even that seemed to have drained him, he collapsed into a seat at the head of the table and licked his dry lips. "My guess is that it was attacked before it could be launched, and it's computer is damaged, I need access to my TARDIS."

"Why?" it was Clara, the Doctor still avoided their eyes.

"I need to get up there and activate the self-destruct before anyone gets their hands on that ship," the Doctor said his gaze full of grim determination.

"Excuse me," the Doctor and the others looked to the door as one of the UNIT officers brought in a large spherical object, the Doctor jumped from his seat and to the side of the object, running his eyes along it he took a deep breath and placed his hand onto the outer surface, he then pressed down forming a recess, then pulling back the sphere opened like a flower to reveal a painting covered by a shroud, affixed to the shroud was a piece of browned paper.

The Doctor read the script, he'd seen it before and abruptly dropped it as he stormed onto the flight deck and gazed up at the blue sky.

Clara swallowed and pick up the paper, Kate joined her as she read it.

_On the Last Day, the Children of Kasterborous will have lost their way._

_Ending, ending to the black and pitch screaming fire, those of the orange sky who not dead and forgotten have grown cruel, their hearts hardened to ice, this is the Empire of Death._

_On the Last Day when the universe is ready to fall Time__'__s Champion, the First and Last of the Time Lords shall face up to his responsibility when all others have turned to darkness._

_From the death and destruction only two elementals shall emerge, forevermore locked in their final confrontation of the enmity of ages._

Clara blinked with confusion and reached forward to pull back the shroud, Bambera and Mace stepped forward to join the two civilians as they looked at the painting. They walked forward to see that the picture was in three dimensions, looking into the painting was more like a window.

Inside the window was a valley between two mountains, at the centre was a city under a cracked glass dome. Beside the city was the wreckage of thousands of Dalek flying saucers, fires raged throughout the scene as another wave of Dalek ships came in, forever frozen in their attack position.

"It's the Last Day," they all turned as the Doctor stood on the railings. "That picture is from the Last Day, when Gallifrey fell, that paper it's a copy of a fragment of the book of Prophecy"

"The book of Prophecy? What happened to science not magic?" Yates asked.

The Doctor turned to look him in the eye.

"The ancient Gallifreyans could remember the future as we remember the past, after the intuitive revolution and the fall of the cult of Pythia the gift faded and the barrier of Time could only be breached physically." The Doctor looked down at the brown paper in Clara's hands. "The cult fled to Karn, although during the Final Days the sisterhood was once more part of the Time Lord hierarchy ironically enough put there by Rassilon."

"Doctor?" Clara asked, he still avoided her eyes.

"It doesn't change anything, I need to go onto that ship and take it out." The Doctor said already heading to the door.

"I'm going with you," Clara said going to join him, Mace also stepped forward.

"Sir, I must agree you're not going there alone," Mace said.

The Doctor turned and took in their faces.

"Colonel you can come, Clara, stay here," the Doctor now looked into her eyes.

"No-" Clara started, only to be abruptly cut off.

"Clara, that's an order," the Doctor said slowly in an even voice.

"What are you some kind of Dalek?" Clara asked raising her voice.

"No I'm the Time Lord who's keeping you safe," the Doctor walked forward to stand right in front of her. "On that warship are more security systems that on this entire planet, it'll let me in as my body is imprinted with the imprimaturs from my two terms as President."

"What about Colonel Mace, he doesn't have Time Lord Presidential imprimaturs. Why can he go?" Clara shouted at him.

"I need someone who can handle themselves an when necessary will be prepared to leave me behind if I need to be." The Doctor said waving a hand to silence Mace's objection.

He then left the room and Clara speechless.

"I'll bring him back," Clara and the others turned to Colonel Mace and saw the conviction in his soul. "I'll make sure he gets back here safe that's a promise."

He then left the room to follow the Doctor.

As they left Yates' phone begun to ring drawing his attention as he walked away.


	10. Interlude - The Last Great Time War in H

**Interlude **

**The Last Great Time War in Heaven **

**(Year 357 of the Last Great Time War)**

The whole of Space-Time brunt, all of creation screamed, across the length and width of the universe people prayed to gods that death and corruption would end, those prayers were unanswered for the war raged across the heavens came to everyone in the end.

"_This is Commander Forcythe of war TARDIS fleet 59-__"_

The last call to the dark was only one of a plethora, of calls as the Time Lords raged against the wall of Daleks.

Saucers and single Daleks flew at the Time Lord fleet; the Medusa Cascade was alight with death and flames. The main concentration of Daleks flew to the Time Station in high orbit of the eleventh moon.

Thousands of blue bolts were traded between them, the Time Station rocked and buffered flames spewed from every deck.

"_This is Time Station 5 we__'__ve lost shields, all hands to escape TARDIS__'__,__"_the voice faded as the Time Station lost orbit, a few white tear drops formed, each immediately broke off on random vectors.

The TARDIS' chameleon circuits started to kick in, adopting battle configuration. As they speed towards edge of the Cascade in an effort to slow the Daleks they sprouted long fins and weapons modules. The exact design was left to each ship, with one coming to resemble a snowflake, another simple pyramid, the third a more chimerical, organic form. All were bone-white, perfectly smooth, with no portholes or vents; they were all pristine unlike the battle scarred TARDIS formation. The Time Station fell into the planet before the reactors exploded shattering the moon and the besieged inhabitants who of course wouldn't have ever existed now.

At the centre of the TARDIS shaped like a snowflake Patience rounded her console she opened fire on the Dalek fleet, she felt her anger and hatred eat up her soul, letting it consume then move through her she let her anger flow into her TARDIS giving it strength. She fired her weapons again and again, but it was too late, the sector was alight with calls for help as TARDIS' and their pilots burnt.

Patience flew her TARDIS onto the edge of the cascade in stealth mode to render repairs, as she let herself feel relief a Neverwhere reached forth, antitime flowing it reached into the core of Patience's TARDIS and pulled.

The cloister bell rang, and the air stank of ozone as Patience ran for the console and tried desperately, readjusting the shields, shifting the engines, and when all else failed she jettisoned the engines as the console exploded, the fires of regeneration already begun to burn.

* * *

><p>The Doctor stood over the situation table in the Presidential officer, as they looked at the tactical positions of Gallifrey's forces and known Dalek positions.<p>

"Now if we can hold Uxarieus for a few more spans we'll be able to- gah!" the Doctor's briefing to the assembled Time Lords and Ladies was cut short when the Doctor's second heart burnt and skipped a beat, one of his hands flung over the side of his chest where his second heart lay, he cried out in agony as he fell forward, he was vaguely aware of someone catching him.

"Doctor?" Brax's arm was wrapped around the Doctor as he and Leela heaved him into a nearby seat.

The Doctor coughed and looked up at Braxiatel, he weakly said one word.

"_Patience,__"_

Understanding flashed in Brax's eyes.

"Madam President, the fleet at the Medusa Cascade?"

Romana entered a few commands into the holographic display to see the data on the destruction of the fleet.

"No survivors," Romana whispered. "I'm sorry."

The Doctor looked up at her as he got back to his feet.

"She's alive, I can feel her," the Doctor's eyes were alight with determination and anger.

He turned and headed out of the office.

"Where are you going?" Romana asked walking past the table.

"Where do you think, I'm going to seal the rift in the Medusa Cascade." The Doctor smiled nonchalantly. "And I'm going to rescue Patience because no matter what she is my Granddaughter's grandmother, the mother of my children and my Wife! If she is alive I will find her."

* * *

><p>The Dalek's clustered around the rift at the Cascade's heart, sensor probes mapped the distortion, this rift was the biggest in the entire universe, using it as a power source they could break through Gallifrey's transduction barriers with ease.<p>

As such when the Doctor's TARDIS screamed towards them the Daleks instantly mobilised stealth ships at the edge of the system.

* * *

><p>The Doctor leant heavily on the console, his desperation palpable as he brought the TARDIS weapons online and scanned the nearby sectors of space for any trace of the TARDIS fleet. He was so absorbed that when the first bolt of weapons fire hit the TARDIS the Doctor was caught by surprise.<p>

Spinning around he returned fire, fiery beams of red energy destroyed the Dalek ship easily.

As the Doctor smiled in victory he spun around and headed back into the nebula.

* * *

><p>As Patience checked over the new TARDIS console she detected the Doctor incoming, her hearts beat a little faster, he was coming to save her, but it was then she realised that the Dalek stealth ship wasn't trying to attack. Losing all sight of staying undetected she tried to bring her telepathic circuits back online.<p>

* * *

><p>The Doctor was on guard for attacks, but wasn't able to notice the stealth ship until it began to Time Ram him, one of the most important rule of TARDIS flight is that no two objects can occupy the same space, it was this that was the most effective TARDIS killer.<p>

The floor shook and the cloister bell begun to toll as the Doctor was thrown from his feet, the console in flames as the room shook. The tremors broke the door to the rest of the ship, flames came through every spot, the doors buckled and exploded outwards, two Ogrons accompanied the Daleks and took hold of the Doctor, feeding off his blind rage the Doctor wrenched his arms from their grasp swung round and punched with all his might at the Ogrons neck, as it fell to the floor the Doctor came about slamming the bottom of his hand into the Orgrons chin.

"YOU WILL DESIST!" the Dalek roared as it fired its weapons on a low setting at the Doctor's legs as he fell to the floor in agony.

The Ogrons had dragged the Doctor into the centre of a command ship outside of the Cascade, a force field surrounded him.

"_Observe Doctor,__"_the blue Dalek Time Controller came forward from the darkness. "_Soon we will crack the Cascade and will destroy your people, we will be Lords of Time, and all of Creation will fall before us.__"_

The Doctor didn't answer, he just looked down his final thoughts on the time he'd spent and all the times he could have stopped this before the War.

* * *

><p>Patience dashed around her TARDIS as she completed the repairs and brought her TARDIS in, materialising in the temporal reactors she brushed her now dark hair back and entered the controller systems.<p>

* * *

><p>Another fleet of TARDIS were in bound, so the Dalek contingent was diminished as some left to reinforce the perimeter. The Doctor was unmoved still at gunpoint, his defeat was complete until a TARDIS begun to materialise, the dull cylinder was a typical shape, but the Doctor smiled with pure joy as he recognised the Time Lady who stepped forth, not in appearance that had changed, but her soul, her spirit, he was able to reach out telepathically to her.<p>

She looked at him and in that second the Doctor realised what he saw in her eyes, she ran out of her TARDIS in a zig-zag before knocking out the force field with a grenade, at the same time explosions came from all over the ship, her TARDIS force field expanded around her as she took down the holding cell around the Doctor.

He took hold of her hand as they ran through the ship, Patience's TARDIS off limits as it was part of the overload, the Doctor didn't look back as he saw his TARDIS, the scorched and scarred blue box in sight, he pulled Patience just that bit closer till the last Dalek came from behind them.

The blue sizzling light came forth and hit Patience right over her secondary heart she stumbled and cried out in pain, holding her tight the Doctor ran into the TARDIS and pulled the emergency seal lever.

Turning to his wife he saw it was bad, all her colour was gone and her hands hovered over her heart.

"Don't try to speak, I'm here," the Doctor said gently tears forming at the side of his eyes.

"Can… too much damage to my second heart… I'm dying," Patience swallowed as she reached out to caress the Doctor's face tears streamed down his cheeks. "Goodbye my love…"

As her body slumped the Doctor buried his head in her neck and cried, and screamed.

Sometime later the Doctor wasn't sure when he pulled himself up and finished what she'd started, he sealed the rift and destroyed all of the Daleks present, the flash of light would still be seen billions of light years away, his final testament to her…


	11. Chapter 7 - Return to the Homestead

**Return to the Homestead**

The TARDIS slammed down inside the cradles in the CIA tower, pressing a few controls the Warking hacked into the Capitol grid, throughout the Amplified Panatropic Network codes and backdoors put in place millions of years ago.

"What do you want?" the Warking asked Arla from across the console. "I could put you in the regiment as if you'd never met me."

"Why, where are you going?" Arla asked him in turn already having a feeling that she wouldn't like whatever he said next.

"First I'm going to rescue Narvin, then I'm going to stop this war once and for all," the Warking's answer wasn't particularly forthcoming, but Arla realised what he was saying.

"You're going to destroy Time Lords and Daleks alike," Arla wasn't sure whether to be appalled or relieved that the war would end.

"Yes,"

"Well, it ends as it begun," Arla responded her voice full of sadness.

"I'm sorry?"

"Rassilon and a corrupt leadership for the Gallifreyan people." Arla said. "Wonder why we never tried to find the Other or Omega."

The Warking watched Arla, his eyes guarded.

"You remember the Other?" the Warking asked in surprise.

"Yeah, apparently he threw himself into the central loom in order to be reincarnated one day in Gallifrey's future." Arla said as the Warking crossed the room to pull up a staser rifle.

"If you want to come with me I suggest you get a weapon," the Warking turned back to K-9. "K-9 stay here and be ready to transfer the TARDIS directly to the Vaults."

"Warking, where are we?" Arla asked already bringing up her own rifle.

"Above, between or below," the Warking sung, badly.

"The Dark tower?" Arla asked.

"Yes, the only place where Rassilon could stop his opponents from finding that Gallifrey's legal President was still alive." The Warking's voice was full of contempt as he walked out of the TARDIS into the stone room that contained Rassilon's tomb, and stretched out across the stone slab was Narvin, he was tied in a spread eagle position, his face was pitted and full of scars. Blood was smeared across his Patrexian robes.

The Warking placed his twin fingers on Narvin's temples.

_Narvin, it__'__s me__…_

* * *

><p>Rassilon paced across the Presidential office, he barely took notice when Matthias entered his office, his was too busy studying his new face.<p>

"My Lord President, we have a Matrix alert, someone has entered the Dark Tower,"

Rassilon turned to Matthias his eyes filled with murderous rage.

* * *

><p>Narvin pulled himself up and took the Warking's arm and looked at Commander Arla.<p>

"Acting-President are you alright?" the Warking asked as Narvin drew level with him, they looked into each other's eyes before Narvin's slipped to the transmat both as two chancellery guards materialised. Narvin took the Warking's pistol as the Warking raised his rifle, the two Time Lords fired, the chancellery guard fell, dead, but more came.

Firing continuously the Warking and Narvin spun over the stone slab as weapons fire scorched and burnt the room.

"Commander Arla get back to my TARDIS and activate emergency protocol two!" the Warking ordered as he and Narvin pocked their heads up to fire, more and more guards poured in only to be met by sudden and brutal death, as materialised from the both they'd be instantly cut down as staser fire burnt their armour and destroyed their second hearts with absolute precision, neither the Warking or Narvin missed.

Despite their marksmanship more and more guards poured in until they were hemmed in.

"Why did you come back for me?" Narvin asked over the cacophony.

"After all the days, all the loses, Lucie, Tamsin, Alex, Patience, Brax, Leela…" the Warking looked up to fire off another salvo of weapons wire. "I'm not losing anyone else."

"Well touching as that is, you've just killed our only chance of stopping Rassilon!" Narvin said in turn as the trasmat both powered up and Chancellor Matthias appeared.

Just as they were about to be overwhelmed the TARDIS begun to materialise around them, they dimly heard Matthias roar to raise the force field.

"K-9 get us out of here!" the Warking shouted as the TARDIS rocked to the side.

"Raise force fields!" Narvin crashed over the console and took over; the Warking was slow to assist. "We need to lock onto the Matrix partition under the Panopticon."

"I know!" the Warking shouted back as the TARDIS rocked back and forth. "Wanted the best TARDIS pilot, unfortunately Romana wasn't available!"

"Second best to Romana, I can live with that!" Narvin shouted back, the Warking smiled back.

"I don't know who wouldn't mind being second to the smartest Time Lord ever!" the Warking said as the TARDIS rocked to a halt.

Narvin and the Warking ran to the doors and into the catacombs, at the centre of the Capitol was the great hexagonal hall of the Panopticon and beneath it was the Eye of Harmony Chamber. The two Time Lords knew exactly where to go, the massive double doors were a hundred feet tall.

Moving forward Narvin stood tall.

"I am Narvinectralonum of the Patrexian Chapter, Acting-President of the Time Lords and I demand entry!" Narvin's voice was small compared to the sound as the massive locks and automatic clicking as the doors parted.

They then plunged forward into the darkness; at the centre was a massive brass sphere, from the top was a hexagonal pillar that stretched all the way up to the Panopticon.

"It's incredible," Narvin breathed.

"Yes, the Other completed this chamber in Omega's name," the Warking said as he walked forward to a console, Narvin stepped onto the edge of the Sphere.

"Now," Narvin ordered as the Warking pressed the control as a sphere of glowing white light formed. He reached out and closed his fist around the Great Key, he stepped back.

Nodding the Warking pressed another series of controls causing the sphere to roll to the side and the Infinite Time Loop to fail revealing a crate.

Narvin attached the transmat control to the crate and turned back to the Warking.

"We have it,"

* * *

><p>"<em>My apologies Lord President but the Lord Doctor and Lord Narvin escaped your chambers in the Dark Tower, they appeared to have the assistance of a deserter from Arcadia,<em>_"_Rassilon shuddered at Matthias' voice came over the communications net, _must I be surrounded by these fools._

"Very well Chancellor, we shall continue the search throughout the Capitol," Rassilon cut the link.

Turning back to the double door of his office Rassilon flexed his fingers in the _Gauntlet of Arcalia. _

_Where would I go if I wanted to stop the Magnatron power sequence? _Rassilon mussed, while he was no scientist Rassilon knew some of the principles behind the Magnatrons operation and the power sequence for the Eye of Harmony as designed by the Other during his days as Rassilon's contemporary.

* * *

><p>The massive double doors to the Eye Chamber closed; the Warking and Narvin looked satisfied, as they made their way back to the TARDIS neither of them spoke, they didn't have to. While every other Time Lord had been consumed by hatred, anger and a desire to survive Narvin and the Warking remembered what it actually meant to be a Time Lord, and what it meant they must do. They wished they didn't.<p>

They suddenly ducked behind an ancient support girder as a small group of guards walked passed; they were holding a young woman, presumably a Time Lady who objected to the Final Sanction. Her duty insignia suggested a Matrix technician.

One of the Guards turned their head to look around, then apparently satisfied there where to witnesses he raised the staser and fired into her head at point blanc range.

As her dead body rolled to the floor the guards laughed and moved on, not noticing as Narvin and the Warking stepped from the shadows, kneeling beside her body Narvin rolled her eyelids shut.

He then stood as the two Time Lords continued towards the TARDIS, just as they reached the doors an energy blast roared overhead, the Warking crashed with all his might into Narvin, the blast grazed the back of his head. Spinning around the Warking fired a single shot at Matthias who lead the group of guards, as he fell down the fires of regeneration begun to blaze beneath his skin.

Kicking open the doors the Warking unleashed K-9 who having expanded the TARDIS' force fields rendered the stasers useless.

"K-9 activate the transmat control and bring it here!" the Warking had grabbed Narvin and dragged him into the TARDIS as the engines started and the box faded from view.

* * *

><p>The Last Great Time War in Heaven raged across the universe for more than a thousand years, the Dalek emperor in orbit scintillated with glee as the transduction barriers weakened and the Quantum Force fields collapsed, Gallifrey's last garrison of war TARDIS' were being repelled. Soon the Daleks would become all powerful.<p>

Deep inside the Capitol Rassilon surveyed the data on the plan to breach the Time Lock, if successful they'd only need to hold the breach open for a few microspans before reality integrity fell below sustainable levels and space-time collapsed.

Meanwhile across the planet in southern Gallifrey stood a mountain, in days past the House of Lungbarrow, which was perched on the side of the mountain. Would have overlooked the majestic Cadonflood river, but now the nearby tectonic plates had shifted and buckled, molten rock flowed from nearby peaks and the river was now a bloated swell of chemical waste from the war-looms and magma from some long-extinct caldera set off by the Dalek assaults. The orange sky was blotted out by ash, acid rain had scouwered the few non volcanic peaks down to nothing, snow and plants had long been destroyed.

Inside the Houses' attic the TARDIS materialised, the Warking stepped out and looked around with despair.

"Welcome Home Thete, welcome home…" he muttered, louder he added to Arla and Narvin. "Welcome to my ancestral home, the House of Lungbarrow."

"It's a wreck!" Arla exclaimed taking in the dilapidated room.

"Like most of the planet," Narvin cynically added.

"It wasn't always like this," the Warking started. "When I was young the hallways lit up and the Drudges and painting would whisper their welcome, now it's dead and empty, looted too I'll bet!"

Narvin laid a hand onto the Warking's shoulder as a tear made its way down his face. Looking around Narvin turned to Arla, the whole right side of his face was terribly burnt and he only had vision in one eye.

"Commander find the Loom controls, we need access to the Capitol grid," as Arla left Narvin walked forward to join the Warking at the window, _a burnt orange paradise, _was how he'd once have described Gallifrey, but not anymore.

"Leela once said that it was in the outlands that Gallifrey's future lay amongst the sand beetles and dust worms, well they all died," Narvin broke the Warking's concentration and nostalgia. "Gallifrey has no future, not anymore…"

Trailing off Narvin went to assist Arla as the Warking re-entered his TARDIS.

"K-9, find Narvin and Arla,"

"_Affirmative, Master,__"_

Watching sadly as K-9 left and he was alone he turned to the crate, focusing his eye into the blue light the retina scan authenticated who he was, as he pulled back he put the Great Key into the lock and saw the box open. Inside was a dull black cylinder that would attach to the TARDIS console and a controller with a white point star as the detonator charge, licking his dry lips he attached the device and held the tiny diamond in his hand.

"_If you__'__re going to do it, do it and put us out of our misery,__"_

Spinning around the Warking saw Romana perched in his armchair, this Romana was how she'd been at the start of her term, her previous regeneration, flowing golden hair and a lovely smile, her voice was as Presidential as ever.

"Romana?" the Warking whispered in shock, he was in half a mind to call Narvin.

"Don't you like it, I searched your memories and you always associate this body with authority.

"You're not Romana, who are you?"

"No, not this form how about this one?" the not-Romana morphed and shifted into a figure on a tweed jacket, cardigan and tie, in other words the Warking's old friend Brigadier Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge Stewart, retired of course. "Ah Doctor, splendid fellows, all of you."

"Don't call me that," the Warking breathed. "The Doctor died in the Presidential office the moment that the blade plunged between Romana's hearts, I'm all that's left."

"You say that," Alistair crossed to stand in front of the Warking. "And yet you still yearn for another way."

"How do you know that?"

"I can see inside your head, the Final Sanction, the Daleks, all of the other horrors in this war." Alistair looked around the console room. "Who am I?"

"You're the Moment, the interface the Other built to stand in judgement of those who would try to destroy the Time Lords." The Warking, said in resignation. "I have no desire to survive this."

"Then that's your punishment, you Arla and Narvin. You live." Alistair sat down beside the console followed by the Warking. "You once disagreed emphatically with the real Brigadier over the Silurian affair."

"He… He committed genocide," the Warking's voice cracked, sure this was Romana's plan should the war progress to far but she wasn't the one pressing the button, that was him.

"And he was following orders, just as you are now," Alistair swallowed. "Do you know how many people on this planet disagree with the Sanction, how many newly loomed Time Lords and Ladies really want to go through with this?"

"No,"

"One day you will, do you want to see who you will become?"

"No," the Warking looked at his feet. "I know who I am, I am the Warking, loomed from the House of Lungbarrow on Otherstide eve, I was once married to the most wonderful woman in the universe, we had thirteen children, grandchildren, even a Great Grandson. I am known as the Oncoming storm, Ka Faraq Gatri, destroyer of worlds, bringer of darkness, Time's Champion and a former President of Gallifrey, and on the Last Day I would die alongside my people."

"No, Doctor," Alistair looked to the Warking. "That isn't your fate,"

"What's that?" the Warking asked as a portal opened overhead.

"A doorway into your future," Alistair took hold of the white point star and put it into the Warking's pocket.


	12. Chapter 8 - Meetings

**Meetings**

As Jack watched this earlier Doctor he was able to see noted differences, noticeably he seemed tired.

"So what's happening Doc'?" Jack asked as he took up the rear.

"Well, for the first century of my life I kept hearing rumours that the Time Lords would eventually be at war with an unknown enemy, after a long time travelling in the shadow of that conflict I collapsed the Timeline by destroying Gallifrey." The Doctor swallowed before continuing. "I was able to rebuild the civilisation using the Matrix, I spent one thousand years on the planet, served on the High Council for a long time. Then I left, I met Samson and Gemma and travelled around for a bit before answering a Time Lord distress beacon, then I travelled with Mary Shelly for a while before returning home."

"Home?" Sarah asked looking at him with a little surprise.

"Yeah Gallifrey," as the Doctor crossed the room his eyes became dark and guarded, scorch marks where all the way along the walls.

As they walked further he found a metal framework surrounding a massive brass sphere expanded further than could be seen.

"It can't be…" the Doctor breathed, looking at the sphere in horror.

"What is it?" the Doctor wasn't sure which one of them asked.

"It's a blackstar," like that explained everything the Doctor ran to the console and entered his High Council code.

"Doctor is it a weapon?" Jack asked, the console was in Gallifreyan and thus gibberish to him.

"Yes, it's an immensely powerful weapon, and it's target is…" the Doctor pulled on the half-moon glasses that his fifth self-wore. "…is Skaro in prehistory."

The Doctor stopped and smiled.

"Well, that's me done with, come on I'll take you home," the Doctor was already leaving to the others confusion.

"Why?" it was Sarah this time.

"You were there on Skaro when I made the worst mistake in my life, surely it's obvious." The Doctor said not looking back.

"What does he mean?" Martha asked, this time the Doctor did stop before spinning to face the others, the glasses still perched on his nose.

"Back when I travelled with Sarah I was sent on a mission by a Time Lord, who I believe may be councillor Valyes. My mission was to avert the creation of the Daleks, but at the key moment I hesitated, I questioned whether I had the right to destroy them."

"You did the right thing," Sarah added, but her voice seemed devoid of conviction.

"No I didn't, I was a young naive fool." The Doctor seemed just as bitter and annoyed as his future selves would be. "Did I have the right… yada…yada… yada. Well here's the truth did I have the right? Yes I did, I had the right! I've seen all the people the Daleks have killed, I had the right to destroy them!"

Just at that moment a golden portal begun to open and out came the tenth Doctor, snapping shut after him the Doctor looked down to meet the eyes of his younger self.

"So you're my replacement," the eight Doctor said as he pulled his future self up to his feet.

"Well, yep," the tenth Doctor looked around seeing Jack, Sarah, Martha and then Mickey. "But… Mickey… Doctor What?"

"Do you always do that?" his past self asked.

"_What?__"_

"Doctor?"

"_WHAT!?__"_


	13. Chapter 9 - Journey into the Heart of De

**Journey into the Heart of Death**

Colonel Mace stood to the side as the Doctor controlled the TARDIS; he hadn't said a word since they'd left the _Defiant. _The silence seemed deafening.

"So Doctor, you were President of the Time Lords?" Mace asked trying to strike up a conversation.

"Yes, twice," the Doctor wasn't in the mood for that type of conversation, ever since he'd seen the painting of the Last Day he'd been lost in memories, seeing Rassilon kill Narvin with the Guantlet, shooting K-9 and Arla. The battles themselves, it was all the Doctor could do to keep going.

Suddenly shaking the Doctor and Mace were nearly thrown from their feet, taking hold of the console the Doctor tried to make sense of the readings as the TARDIS initiated an emergency landing.

"Doctor, what was that?" Mace asked straightening his uniform.

"Extreme time distortion," the Doctor said as he powered down the engines. "We were nearly knocked off course."

Taking a deep breath the Doctor headed towards the door only to be stopped by Colonel Mace.

"Doctor no, I'll go first," Mace took out his pistol, the Doctor grimly nodded as he pulled open the door, together the two left to find themselves in a gutted metal hallway, some sort of organic fibres made their way through the ceiling and the floor.

"I've been here before…" the Doctor mused as he set off. "Colonel, this is an order, if there is any trouble you are to return to the TARDIS immediately."

"But sir-"

"No arguments," and the Doctor's tone brokered none either.

* * *

><p>From the shadows they were observed.<p>

"_Another one of him has arrived,__"_

"_It does not matter, begin the invasion of Earth__…"_

* * *

><p>"Doctor, do you feel as if we're being watched?" Mace asked, his pistol raised to be ready at the slightest sign of trouble.<p>

"Yeah," the Doctor pulled out his sonic and begun to scan the area, before finding a gaping hole in the wall.

Lowering the screwdriver he headed in followed by the Colonel, the Doctor took in the massive sphere before going to the console. He pressed a few controls before he grinned.

"I've disarmed the blackstar, good thing to; it could have shattered this entire solar system," the Doctor turned to Mace so he could see that the smile hadn't quite reached his eyes. "Now to set the self-destruct."

"Doctor!" Mace shouted as he raised his pistol.

"What is it?" the Doctor scanned the wall with his eyes; as such he didn't see the gathering shadow behind him.

Mace keep the gun trained as the shadow whipped forward and touched his arm, burning pain swept through as he fell to the floor, the Doctor rushed forward to help but was stuck by a second one, he was raised off the ground and into the air. Just as vision faded Mace could have sworn he saw someone in a blood red cloak, as his eyes closed Mace head a gunshot and the pain receded.

* * *

><p>The Warking walked the corridors, he knew where he was, it was obviously a Time Lord warship. Ducking into the side the Warking saw the TARDIS materialise, it seemed different the windows were lighter and the box was larger, he immediately screened his mental presence so he'd be harder to sense.<p>

Two individuals came out, the first an upright military man, the Warking smiled, _at least I regenerate into someone who has a duty and will follow it. _However that smile faded when a second individual came out, he wore a tweed frock coat and a bowtie, his hair was flapping over his forehead and he couldn't seem to keep his hands still, but what most alarmed the Warking was that he recognised the aura. _No, _he thought, desperate not to turn into such an incarnation, his opinion of his future self improved when he saw his future self-give the Colonel a direct order.

As he trailed them the Warking felt more and more disgusted by his future self, based on his observations in order to cope with the guilt this version of him had mentally recessed to the mentality of a child, _I mean, I wasn__'__t even that immature at the Academy, _the Warking thought derisively.

The Warking watched as his future self and the Colonel walked around, briefly distracted by the ring on his figure, it was an ancient relic from the Old Times. They were used by the first chrononauts to help fly the early TARDIS', this specific ring was one of two, the other belonged to the house of Blyledge and had belonged to Patience. As he looked up once more he was relieved to see his future self had finally located the door to the weapons platform.

Skirting the edge of the room the Warking noticed the two shadows form, he knew exactly what they were, something that should have passed on long ago.

As his future persona deactivated the blackstar the Warking removed his vortex gun and primed it, he could tell that his future self was unaware of the shadows by the fact that he was focusing on the console.

"Doctor!" the Warking turned as one of the shadows reached out to grab the UNIT officers arm, the Warking felt sympathy as paradoxes and impossibilities spread causing the worst pain imaginable. The Warking raised the firearm ready to fire till he heard another moan, then he saw that another shadow had taken hold of the Doctor, the energies and Paradoxes did far worse to Time Lords, even the slightest echoes of the powers of the Paradox.

Making a split decision not entirely based on the facts the Warking shot the shadow assaulting the UNIT colonel, watching in satisfaction the shadow dissolved as the corrupted loa fell into the vortex to be destroyed. The Warking turned and stepped into the light; he removed his shroud and looked up at his future.

"Hello Warking, fancy meeting you here," the Warking smiled as he raised the gun and took out the shadow.

His future Persona fell to the floor, the Warking stood over him.

* * *

><p>The Doctor felt agony as the shadow lifted him up, his lungs, his heart and his brain burnt in agony as the impossibilities ate away at him, he could feel every moment of injury magnified as if it was all happening now. <em>Ten years spent in the TARDIS fleeing Metebelis III with radiation poisoning, falling from the Pharos, watching as Patience died the first time, losing Adric, the Spectrox, torture at the hands of Fenric, the sandbags dropping on his chest and crushing his ribs<em>_…_

Luckily the Doctor was able to refocus on the outside world when he heard a shot, he looked up to see and feel the aura of his past self, the one who fought in the Time War after Romana died, the blood red cloak, the clothes barely held together and an armoury of weapons. The Doctor felt euphoria as the Warking discharged the vortex gun destroying the shadow.

He fell to the ground and started to catch his breath.

"_Hello Warking, fancy meeting you here,__"_

The Doctor looked up in rage.

"Warking! I'm not you I'm the Doctor!" the Doctor felt disappointed that his past didn't flinch, in fact he focused on the Doctor's eyes and spun around.

The Warking has just seen the reflection before he spun round, the person stood over the Colonel, he or she wore worn grey robes and hood and on their face was a mask of bone looking like a cross between a human and a bats. He or she raised a knife over the Colonel's throat, bloodstains covered the knife and pieces of gristle and skin flaked off.

Little more than a blur the Warking crossed the room and grabbed the knife, he crushed the cultist's wrist and crushed as he spun the hand back causing the cultist to scream in pain, a few dry brittle locks of hair spilled from the hood.

"Doctor, get the Colonel back to the TARDIS!" the Warking ordered as he stood between the Colonel and the cultist, he could tell it was a she now.

The Warking stretched out his senses to try to gain an impression but found nothing; surprised the Warking pushed further, but still found nothing.

"Who are you?" the Warking asked.

"What do you mean 'who are you', is it not clear to you bloodthirsty mind, their Faction,"

"No she's not, I can't sense anything, she may look like one but she's not, there's no Paradoxes," the Warking smiled. "So who are you and why are you trying to steal a Time Lord warship? Where are we anyway?"

"On course for Earth," the Doctor said quietly.

The Warking looked at the Doctor before looking back at the cultist; the gun still trained on her.

"Well, what do you want with the Earth," the Warking began to circle his opponent. "I mean you're clearly not Faction, I can't sense any instabilities, so who are you?"

"Time Lords, this planet is ours…" with that the cultist form shifted to turn into a Zygon. "The Earth is ours…"


	14. Interlude - In her Footsteps

**Interlude **

**In her Footsteps**

The Doctor awoke, something was off, he left his room and headed to the console room, it was _her. _The Doctor was sure of it, he'd never miss her scent, his left hand moved to fiddle with the blue ring on his hand.

Looking at the TARDIS controls revealed that the ship wasn't in flight, his hands moved to the lever that controlled the overhead scanner. But stopped and smiled, it had been two months since Romana and Narvin showed up to explain Straxus' actions in regard to Molly O'Sulivan, but now that Romana's Presidency had been restored there was nothing else to worry about, so the Doctor wasn't worried. As he opened the double doors the Doctor picked up the question mark umbrella Benny had returned to him alongside his Panama hat.

"Hello, I'm the Lord Doctor of the House of Lungbarrow…" the Doctor started only to falter as he saw to his surprise he wasn't in an entry place anywhere in the Capitol, in fact he was in a garden on the top of the mountain of Good Will, overlooking the ocean of Eternal Glory. The twin suns twinkled off of the water. As the Doctor looked around the garden he found it familiar, he walked forward to the final bed of flowers and plucked a Sarlain flower, it was a peculiar mixture of a rose and a daisy and everything between.

As the Doctor turned he saw Lady Patience of the House of Blyledge, his wife, standing before him, the Doctor smiled in greetings as his eyes met her blue ones. She wore official robes, the long and binding Prydonian robes hid the body the Doctor knew so well, the birthmark on her ankle, the pattern of freckles on her shoulder blades, only he had ever had such thoughts. The few features visible were still perfection to the Doctor's eyes, the high cheekbones, full red lips and those beautiful blue eyes.

"Hello thee my Wife, as humble Lord of Lungbarrow I request audience," the Doctor smiled in jest at their shared joke.

"Hello thee my Husband as the Lady of Blyledge I grant you audience," as Patience finished the Doctor rushed forward and placed the Sarlain into the hair, never once breaking eye contact. "A flower from my own garden Doctor, you are as predictable as ever."

She leaned forward and touched foreheads, in a telepathic bond honoured since the Old Times, they were no longer the Doctor and Patience, they were husband and wife, two Gallifreyans linked for all time.

Pulling back the Doctor looked into her eyes.

"As great as it is to see you, I know you didn't bring me here just to catch up, why am I here?" the Doctor looked at her a touch of sadness in his eyes.

"I'm sorry Doctor, High Council matters," Patience reached out and took his hand. "Romana and Narvin wanted you here."

The Doctor looked at his feet.

"What for?"

"An emergency session of the High Council, they won't tell me why," Patience offered her left arm for the Doctor to take as she let go of his hand, the Doctor only looked at her once before smiling and taking her arm.

"I could never be mad at you," he smiled mischievously at her. "Still I'll be staying for a while."

Patience blushed as they were transducted straight into the High Council chamber, the Doctor turned to see the people at the council table sat K'anpo Rimpoche, the Monk, Leela and Ace the Doctor's adopted daughter.

"Alright Professor?" Ace said as she stepped up, to the Doctor's absolute shock her robes were worn in the same manner as Patence.

"Hello Ace, it's been a while," the Doctor said as he managed to give her a one armed hug.

"Well, yeah, you're wife's been great company," Ace teased as she hugged Patience in turn.

"K'anpo," the Doctor said in greeting as he sat beside his old mentor, his wife on the other side, he took a tight hold of Patience's hand when the Monk looked towards him, the Doctor would never forgive him for the death of his Great Grandson and neither would Patience.

"Ah, thank you all for coming," the hexagonal door plates opened and in came Narvin and Brax followed by Romana, her body was the same except the signs of age were creeping in, her blond hair was marred with greys and a few lines were drawn across her face, as President she sat at the head of the table with her Vice-President Narvin beside her on the left and Brax her Chancellor on the right. "Now as the Lady Ace and Castellan Leela already know as of several hours ago relative time a Dalek taskforce attacked the Monan Host world, with assistance of a squadron of war TARDIS' the attack was repelled, and as they returned to Gallifrey we received this transmission…"

Romana pressed a control allowing the image of a trio of Daleks to form as a holographic projection, two were of the white imperial models and the remaining one was a bronze model, a new innovation. At the centre was a familiar back Dalek skirt leading to a wizened deformed and obscene figure.

"_Attention Time Lords of Gallifrey, I am Davros Lord and Creator of the Daleks, the message that follows is vital to the survival of the all. If the High Council of Gallifrey does not surrender to the might of the Dalek Empire then we will have no choice but to destroy them.__"_

"_The Daleks will sweep away Gallifrey and it__s__ impotent Quorum of Time Lords! We shall become all powerful and crush the lesser races. We shall BECOME LORDS OF TIME!__"_

The Doctor looked down at his hand; Patience's hand was gripping his with all her might, he squeezed her hand back, when she looked at him he smiled. She smiled a little in response as well.

"Madam President, I've known Davros for a long time, I don't believe he would be so stupid as to deliberately go to war with the Time Lords," the Doctor said half trying to convince himself and half trying to reassure his wife.

"We have evidence that it's no bluff Doctor," Narvin spoke up. "You are all assembled here as you have all encountered the Daleks in some way or another, Doctor you are the Ka Faraq Gatri and are feared by them. Lady Ace you are also known as a Dalek killer having fought in the Dalek wars on the frontlines, Lord Monk you have had a rather different history and under different circumstances I'd throw you into Shada and leave you to rote -"

"Narvin," Romana cut in her tone brokering no argument. "You have previously helped the Daleks, they may listen to you. As of now Gallifrey as at a state of war. My Lord Doctor, Ladies Ace and Patience are to be sent on a covert mission into the Seriphia Galaxy."

"Madam President what kind of mission?" the Doctor leant forward and placed his head in his hands, his elbows on the table.

"The Lord Doctor and Ladies Ace and Patience are to journey into the Dalek research facility on Elysium, they are using it to reverse engineer Monan Time Engines." Romana turned to the Monk. "Lord Monk you are to organise and audience with the Dalek Emperor, your task is to convince it that it would be suicide to attack Gallifrey. Lord Rimpoche will act as a rear guard, using his abilities to ride the Time Winds. Now lets get to it."

_The Doctor still remembered the mission, it was touch and go but between the three of them the Daleks research was thwarted, upon returning the Doctor stayed on Gallifrey as Coordinator of the CIA. But the day would haunt the Doctor forever more, as during that mission the Doctor mercilessly killed dozens of Daleks and he has still to develop any feelings other than a sense of satisfaction and cool detachment._


	15. Chapter 10 - The Sign of the Doctor

**The Sign of the Doctor**

The Doctor had just been kneeling before the memorial on the Eye of Orion when he fell to the ground before his past self, but not just any version of himself, it was _him, _it may have been from before the Last Day but was still him…

"_WHAT!?__"_the Doctor jumped to his feet and stood before his past, the days forever reviled… "It's you, how can you be here?"

His past self-narrowed his eyes; he could detect the hostility in his futures tone.

"Doctor, why are there two of you?" Sarah stepped forward in an attempt to break the tension.

"It's a grey area, you'd be better to ask my future self," the eight Doctor said still looking intently at his future self, who seemed unable to meet his eyes and when he did they showed open hatred.

"I wouldn't know this version of me is suppressed and as this is a violation of the first Law of Time I won't retain memories anyway," the tenth Doctor retorted as he tore his gaze away. "Hello Sarah Jane,"

Reaching out Sarah gave the tenth Doctor a tentative hug, while Martha, Jack and Mickey crowded in the eight Doctor moved to the blackstar controls.

"Why is _he _here?" the tenth Doctor asked Jack as he looked over his shoulder at his past self, his face marred by hatred.

"He answered our call for help," Mickey said looking at the Doctor. "He's you though isn't he?"

"Yes _he _is unfortunately," the tenth Doctor turned to look at his past. "What is it?"

The eighth Doctor turned to look at his future self.

"I don't know what your problem with me is, but we have more immediate problems Doctor!" the eight incarnation said, a slight Scottish tone reminiscent of his seventh incarnation.

"Why, what's happening?" the tenth Doctor pushed his past self out of the way as he manipulated the controls to bring up a hologram of the warships exterior, two dark orange blips were entering a geosynchronous orbit.

"Jack wasn't it?" the eight Doctor was striding down the steps towards the door, coat tails flying.

"Yeah," Jack was scrambling to follow the eight Doctor still looking back at his own version of the Time Lord.

"Any minute now we're going to be faced with intruders, I need you to identify the places of most likely entrance to this chamber,"

"Why this room?" Jack asked already starting to check in his head.

"Because inside this room is a weapon of immense power that needs to reach its destination," the eight Doctor was already making his way to his future self. "Doctor what've you got, I've a feeling I've slipped forwards through relative Time and won't be able to call Gallifrey for assistance."

"Nothing except for a screwdriver," the tenth Doctor spat back acidly.

"Okay have you identified the incoming ships?" the eight Doctor responded diplomatically.

"No there's too much damage," the tenth Doctor was still glaring at him.

"Okay what's your problem with me Doctor? I've been sent by the High Council to investigate and I'm not leaving, which means we need to work together so what's your problem with me?!"

"You don't deserve the name _Doctor,__"_the tenth Doctor hissed at him before moving aside.

* * *

><p>The giant warship was an omniscate Seal of Rassilon journeying through space, it was marred by scorch and gouge marks as three flies by comparison, these flies went on close sorties and when nothing intercepted them they sent transmat beams directed to find the largest empty space.<p>

* * *

><p>"I've rigged a transduction field, that'll prevent anyone transmatting directly in here but the rest of the ship is unprotected," the eight Doctor turned back to look at the rest of them. "Jack, Mickey locate the most likely point of ingress, and cover it. Sarah, Doctor I want you to enter the conduits and open the control grid so I can expand the field generated by the blackstars vibrations. Martha, I need you on power monitor four so as to trip the circuit when I say."<p>

"Just one thing Doctor, who put you in charge?" the tenth self asked his hate filled gaze fixed on him.

"Precedent Doctor," the eight Doctor said back icily, his future self's attitude was getting on his nerves. "On most occasions when multiple versions of us have meet the earliest incarnation has taken charge."

"Except during the incident with the Ferutu and the Vault of Stellar Curios," the tenth Doctor said back smugly.

"Yes, but on those occasions the elder incarnation remembered the events, I take it you don't" the eight Doctor said back his tone reasonable and patient, but his future self was still glowering at him. "Okay then, what's your plan!"

The tenth Doctor smiled a little in victory as the others looked to him.

"Here's the plan…" the tenth Doctor stopped and looked blank, Jack was reminded of the time in Cardiff with the ninth Doctor when they'd gone after Margret Blain. "Like he said, good plan,"

He then made his way to the maintenance crawlway.

Turning back to the controls the eight Doctor muttered under his breath, '_I haven__'__t had this much trouble since Cousin __Satthraloppe.__'_

* * *

><p>The Zygons moved through the darkened hallways until the entered archway to the blackstar, Jack stood at the ready to fire.<p>

"Doctor, I need the control grid open now!" the eighth Doctor cried out as he did all he could to maintain the transduction field, the crawlway exploded and the tenth Doctor and Sarah fell out, the tenth Doctor turned to him and nodded.

"Martha, now!" the eighth Doctor ordered before the power conduits exploded around him, there was too much damage, what happened next was too fast to follow, within moments the tenth Doctor was on the ground rocked by spasms. Jack was being held by the neck and the other humans were unconscious, the eighth Doctor crawled over to his future self, it was obvious what had happened; he'd been attacked telepathically and had gone into a self-induced coma as a defence.

Suddenly the Doctor's vision flashed and he fell to the ground.

* * *

><p>Jack gasped and woke with a shudder, it took him a while before he realised he'd merely been unconscious, to his left was the tenth Doctor and pacing before him was the eighth Doctor.<p>

"Ah! You're awake!" Jack winced at the eighth Doctor's loud exclamation.

"Do you have to be so loud?"

"Sorry," the Doctor bounded over to him. "I need your help,"

The Doctor looked to the organic weave that made up the cell wall before looking back to Jack.

"My future self has gone into telepathic retreat, in order to help him I'll need to get inside his mind,"

"Okay, why do you need me?" Jack turned to him, his heads thumping had gone down a bit.

"He's my future self, I need someone inside to help me avoid anything that could contaminate the Timeline." The Doctor was already kneeling beside his future self.

"Okay, what do I do?"

"Kneel opposite me and clear your mind," the Doctor reached out two fingers to Jack's temple, he then looked down at his future. "_Contact.__"_

The Doctor and Jack found themselves in a black void with a massive tree in the horizon, Jack could see a frail figure in the distance.

"Doctor, who's that over there?" Jack asked as they started towards him.

As the Doctor grew closer a knot grew in his stomach and he broke into a run.

When they got there they saw a middle-aged man covered with blood and dirt, his clothes were in tatters and his eyes were closed. He was covered in the marks of savage torture, he wheezed with his breath as every intake of breath must have been agony, but the thing was most worrying was the figure was clearly the eighth Doctor himself.

Looking up the Doctor saw a simple High Gallifreyan signature.

"It's my signature…" the eighth Doctor murmured.

"What?" Jack's voice quiet with the shock.

"This; it's my handiwork, I did this to myself…"


	16. Chapter 11 - Self-Mutilation

**Self-Mutilation**

The Warking had reluctantly surrendered his weapon at the behest of his future self and carried the Colonel as the Zygons marched them to a prison cell. As they entered the organic weave grew around the sides and locked them in, the Warking gently lowered the Colonel to the floor before turning to his future self.

"Well, good work Doctor!" the Warking said sarcastically. "We're captured and in a cell on a ship filled with enemy agents, with got them right where we want them, bravo!"

"And what would have been your plan!" the Doctor spun to face the Warking anger and hatred brimming in his eyes. "Massacre your way through them, a few more deaths on my conscience since only us; your successors feel the guilt! You killed whole planets and never felt anything till you became us."

"What have I done to earn such hatred?" the Warking seemed genuinely curious. "All I did was fight in the war and follow through with Romana's plan."

"All… all… you are guilty of war crimes!" the Doctor roared back as he tried to intimidate his past.

"What war crimes, stopping the Daleks?" the Warking was more and more annoyed.

"The destruction of Skaro, the Telac Galactic cluster and the Last Day to name a few!" the Doctor was bellowing now. "There's a reason I sealed your persona into the Room with no Doors!"

"_My head__…"_ the Doctor and the Warking spun as the Colonel begun to stir.

"Colonel are you alright?" the Doctor asked, his anger having faded as he walked to the UNIT officers side.

"Yes Doctor, it's just a headache…" Mace trailed off as he saw who else was in the room. "But, you're the Doctor as well?"

"No his not," the Doctor turned his glare back to the Warking. "You're right that's my past self, but he's not the Doctor, he's called the Warking."

"Okay…" the Colonel said with quite a good handle on the events around him. "I'm Colonel Mace, _Warking _it's good the meet you."

"Likewise," the Warking shook Mace's hand and smiled. "But now we need to focus on getting out of this cell. Any ideas Doctor?"

"Well, no we can't use the sonic and…" the Doctor gazed around the cell before adding in a resign manner. "I've got nothing."

"Okay, well then lets see," the Warking rushed forward and lent on the membrane, he rubbed up and down the fleshy substance. "It's got a high tensile strength I'll give it that, but I doubt it has high elasticity."

"_Not a prison on the room with no doors__…"_the Doctor muttered beneath his breath.

"What?" the Colonel looked to the Doctor in confusion.

"_Time Lord__…"_ the Warking reared up as the Zygon headed to the cell. "Which of you is in charge."

"That would be me," the Warking stepped forward.

"Who put you in charge?" the Doctor said trying to restrain his former self, the Warking however simply turned and twisted the Doctor's hand to break free and walk forward.

"I am the Warking, twice nominated Lord High President of Gallifrey, Supreme Commander of Time Lord Military forces during the Time War," the Warking raised his eye so meet the Zygons gaze. "Fought in the Time War from the First skirmishes to the Last Day, I've seen the intuitive revolution, I fought in the Eternal War and I remember the Old Time. You will take me to your leader!"

Not waiting the Warking stepped forward as the cell opened and he followed the Zygon as it went along the corridor, the Warking on its tail.

"Oh, did I mention that he is the version of me who fought in the Time War?" the Doctor gave a false grin to the Colonel as his gaze followed his past. "I just hope he doesn't annoy them as much as he does me…"

* * *

><p>The Warking stood under the light as the Zygons milled around him.<p>

"_You __said __'__Take me to your leader__'__,__"_the Warking smiled a bit as the projection of Alistair.

"Why would I, when I give instructions it annoys them as they get angrier I'll be able to glean more information." The Warking digged into his pocket before finding a stick of Celery, he offered it to Alistair. "Celery?"

"No Thete,"

Smiling the Warking took a bite, he'd rather be called Thete than 'Doctor'

"Do you regret anything?" the Warking blinked and turned back to look directly at 'Alistair'.

"What?" the Warking was now truly confused.

"Throughout your life any regrets," Alistair slowly morphed into a teenage boy wearing what looked like pyjamas, a small golden star was pinned to his chest.

"_Adric__…"_the Warking backed off in shock. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you."

"Sure you could, just violate the second Law of Time," 'Adric' calmly pointed out. "But you won't will you; _it__'__s easy to be the rebel when you__'__re the teachers pet.__"_

The simple sentence shocked the Warking to the core, ever since he'd left his home of the House of Lunbarrow to the academy under Brax's wing he'd played the school rebel but paradoxically he'd also been the teacher's pet with Borusa. While known as a renegade he always played by the rules, bending them maybe but he never set out to break them.

"Time is immutable, you can't change history, not a single line." The Warking drew strength. "Not even the Highest Lord President of Gallifrey has the right to rewrite history at a whim."

"What's your impression of him? Your future?" 'Adric' turned back into 'Alistair'.

"He's a waste, his mind snapped under the strain of what he's done and I will do all I can not to turn into him but I won't shy away from what needs to be done for selfish reasons," the Warking fired back.

"Really?" Alistair walked around the Warking he seemed to hesitate before continuing. "Do you know what happens to you after you regenerate?"

"My persona will become suppressed into my subconscious, were I will face judgement for what I've done, I will probably have to count on my seventh incarnation for defence." The Warking calmly stated. "I will face their punishment gladly, it can't be worse than what I've seen in this war."

"You're crucified,"

"What…" the Warking looked up in shock.

"Your ninth and tenth incarnations crucify you deep inside your subconscious, they torture you," Alistair looked directly into the Warking's eyes. "Your eleventh incarnation, the one you've just seen doesn't have the stomach to torture you that way, so instead he leaves you sealed up in solitary in the room with no doors. You often say there's no one in the universe who hates you as much as you hate yourself, and you are the focus of that hatred. The Eternal War, trusting Rassilon, Pythia, Omega's tragedy, you are far more than just another Time Lord…"

With the last word the Moment morphed into Innocet, a cousin of the Warking's House, someone he always viewed as an older sister.

"… For you were certainly not from Lungbarrow's loom, what secrets do you have… What could you tell us of the Old Time, the Time of Chaos," 'Innocet' paused her brushing her flaming ginger hair back. "You have much to feel guilt about, how is you conscience Gallifreyan…"

Innocet faded till only air was left, for that was all she was a Matrix projection.


	17. Chapter 12 - I can Here Puccini

**I can hear Puccini**

Jack reeled as he looked at the crucified figure; he could hear music, the tortured Doctor was humming.

"Doctor, what is that?"

"Puccini, Madam Butterfly," the eighth Doctor said as he paced up and down. "Where is he? My future, where would he be Jack? Any memories that he'd seek refuge in? Any people this version of me would feel safe with?"

"Well… erm Rose?" Jack thought scraping his memory trying to think of where his Doctor would take refuge. "What are you doing?"

Jack watched in shock as the eighth Doctor freed his doppelganger from the base of the tree.

"I'm not leaving him here, help me!" the Doctor pulled his other self away, Jack looked around before begrudgingly helping.

"How do we find your future self?" Jack asked as he took some of the crucified Doctor's weight.

"Just think of this Rose, focus on her to draw us in, I'll be able to find the Doctor inside,"

* * *

><p>"Ruathadvorophrenaltid!<em>"<em>_ Thete called after the Gallifreyan woman, she turned back and took hold of his hand and pulled him forwards into the venting._

_The two Gallifreyans were cramped into the cylindrical cupboard space, Ruatha looked at Thete mischief shimmered in her eyes._

"Ruatha we'll get caught_!__"__ Thete said aghast at her lack of respect for the rules. __"_We're not allowed in the TARDIS cradles Tutor Borusa said so!_"_

"Oh Thete, you're such a teachers pet!" _Ruatha leaned closer to Thete as she opened a panel in a recess of the venting. _"We're not going anywhere we're just going to generate a Time Interference Field."

"But the higher years are using Temporal Vector Generators, the interference would ruin the results, it could ruin their coursework." _Thete was terrified, but Ruatha turned back to him and pushed him into the wall and leant against him, Thete nervously swallowed as she entered his mind. Mutual mental contact was one of the most intimate things Gallifreyan__'__s could engage in, the only people who__'__d ever been inside Thete__'__s head were Quences, Brax and Innocet. As Ruatha slide further into his psyche he felt the rules Borusa had pounded into him become fuzzy, Ruatha__'__s voice echoed in his mind._

'Just do it, it's fun. You're not Braxiatel…'

As she retreated she smiled at him before planting a kiss on his lips and pressing the transmat control, taking hold of his hand she dragged the lead footed Thete into the darkened TARDIS cradle built into the Basement of the Academy inside of Mount Cadon. Only one TARDIS was in front of them, Ruatha ran to it and turned to face Thete she gave him a brilliant smile.

"So how do we get in?" _she asked testing him._

"Well, it's an antique," _Thete passed around the TARDIS before ending up face to face with Ruatha_. "It's a type forty, they used a trimonic lock, we just need the right cypher indet key."

Ruatha smiled back as she brushed past him and picked up a purple crystal and inserted the crystal end into the door control, and then the two classmates entered the capsule.

* * *

><p>The two Doctor's and Jack arrived in the memory, the tenth Doctor and Rose were on New Earth, the city of New New York spread out between them.<p>

"No," the eighth Doctor said looking at the memory. "That's not him, it's just a memory."

"_I know where he is__…"_

The eighth Doctor spun to see his crucified persona stand up, instead of the velvet frock coat he wore at present his future self was wearing a black frock coat.

"I can tell you how to find the latest version of me," he looked to the eighth Doctor. "You will have to trust me…"

* * *

><p><em>Thete and Ruatha sprang into the console room to find a wreck.<em>

"Well whoever owned this TARDIS wasn't a very good pilot," _Thete thought out loud as he read the flight log._

"What do you mean?" _Ruatha came up behind him, placing her head on his shoulder Thete became distracted by the layers of hair cascading from over his shoulder._

"Well… erm… it's obvious this ship has been damaged, I would say it took a hit from some sort of temporal energy beam before hitting an asteroid." _Thete swallowed as he got down to his knees and pulled open a panel, to find himself faced with the glowing golden light of the exposed space-time booster element._"The most beautiful thing I've ever seen…"

"To this day I don't know if I meant Ruatha, the TARDIS or the vortex," _Thete spun round to find a man wearing a blue greatcoat and two other identical men in frockcoats._

"Why did you let him out?" Thete roared up and turned into the tenth Doctor.

"Why not?" the eight Doctor said back quietly. "I should have known I'd take refuge here, the first time I broke any of the academy rules."

"Yes, but that's not the point," the tenth Doctor stepped forward to challenge his two previous selves. "You destroyed Gallifrey!"

"Yes but I rebuilt it!" the eighth Doctor roared back in defence.

The tenth Doctor glared at him, the first Law of Time the only thing preventing an explosion of rage and hatred.

* * *

><p>Sarah, Martha and Mickey raced away when the two Doctor's and Jack started to scream, Jack came around first as he crashed back.<p>

The two Doctor's then rose up and strode away from each other, then they leant on the walls glaring at each other, after a while of silence the eighth Doctor spoke.

"Now that I've released my persona from your subconscious can you remember?"

"No, and for what it's worth I'm sorry, you haven't done anything yet…" the tenth Doctor spoke quietly, that small apology was all the eighth Doctor would get.


	18. Interlude - In Memory of the Uncertain S

**Interlude **

**The Memory of the Uncertain Soldier**

The Doctor stood in silence, his head bowed as he leant on the question mark umbrella, while he seemed at peace his mind was full of plans, schemes and worries.

"Co-ordinator," the Doctor turned as Vansell entered the tomb and came up to stand by his side. "The special envoy of the High Council has arrived; a special meeting of the High Council has been called."

The Doctor nodded before looking to Vansell.

"Do you remember the history of the Dark Times?" the Doctor sighed. "After the Other fled Gallifrey there was no one to stop Rassilon leading to the Time Wars. The most terrible chapter in our history; we destroyed whole sections of the universe in an attempt to destroy anyone who could ever challenge us. The wars finally ended when Rassilon was imprisoned inside the Dark Tower."

"I know that Doctor, I've seen the files," Vansell shot back.

"Please ensure that all of our operatives are in place, I have a feeling that Peace or War may well be decided in the next meeting," the Doctor gave Vansell as slight smile before leaving the memorial, he headed into the core of the Citadel.

Built after the Old Times the Citadel was a fortress, with battlements and fortifications inside of the dome, however it was built over the ruins of Old Gallifrey, the Vaults and the Old City were still underneath and while treacherous could be used as shortcuts to traversing the dimensionally transcendental buildings of the Capital. For instance if the Doctor could get to the base of the Communications Tower in five microspans he'd be able to cross into the Panopticon and presuming the rotation hadn't changed he'd be able to reach the High Council chamber in record time.

Crossing through the abandoned caves and walkways the Doctor found his way to the elevator by the spot he'd once landed as a pawn of the Master, taking several levels up as his Time Lord right rather than the stairs he exited and headed into the Panopticon, the massive hexagonal hall was at the very centre of the Capitol and formed the base of several towers including residential Compounds for Time Lords, the Presidential Palace, CIA tower and other High Council facilities. The centre of the floor was inlaid with the omniscate, the Seal of Rassilon, an ancient, swirling, circular design that symbolised infinity and eternity. Far, far, beneath there was the Eye of Harmony; _Omega_'s star, the Singularity that he'd sacrificed his life to bring back to Gallifrey at the end of the Old Time. A vast statue of one of the Gallifreyan Founders stood in each corner of the Panopticon, at the furthest end to the Doctor leading to the High Council chamber would have been Rassilon except due to the civil war the damage had been left unrepaired, the statue of the Other was over the entrance to the CIA tower and Omega was above the entrance to the Presidential tower, so as to remind those who held the highest office of the sacrifice the Glory of Gallifrey was based on. In the other corners were Arcalia, Prydon and Dromiealandren, all six statues were in various states of disrepair, but Rassilon's was the worst; most likely due to Romana's influence. Sprinting across the aircraft hangar sized hall was not easy, members of the Chancellery Guard practiced time honoured positions, Time Lords milled around expectantly while engineers reinforced the Eye of Harmony's containment shielding, but at last the Doctor dashed into the High Council tower.

Inside the hollow of the tower he was left with two choices, either he could dash up all seventy five floors via the steps or the elevator, a bell rang through the Capital. _Five Bells, _the High Council didn't like to be kept waiting, the Doctor took the lift.

As the Doctor arrived he caught sight of Leela, still in the skins she wore during her time with the Doctor.

"Castellan!" the Doctor dashed to catch her up, he saw her face and regretted his choice of words.

"It's Leela, Doctor!" Leela grated out. "I refuse to wear your city clothes and I will not use your titles."

"Very well Lady Leelandredloomsagwinaechegesima," the Doctor nodded his head ignoring Leela's glare at the Doctor's use of her full Gallifreyan name as the entered the High Council Chamber.

The Room was hexagonal, and coloured in pastels, on the left side of the double doors was the transmat control, opposite the door was the Harp of Rassilon with a portrait of Rassilon and a sheet of music. On the right was a two layered area for the six seats of the High Council members and in the centre of the table was a gold table covered in Gallifreyan symbols.

Romana sat at the head, Narvin on her left and Brax on her right, also at the table was Lady Flavia, Lady Theorasdavoramilonithene, Lord Wratac, Lady Patience, Lord Savar and Lady Dondequest. Romana looked again even older, as did Narvin by her side, Brax looked the same as ever while Flavia had regenerated, her hair was still in her typical manner and she wore the robes of office easily. The Lady Theorasdavoramilonithene had her dark hair pulled up in a bun, as did the older severe looking Dondequest, Wratac looked extremely uncomfortable as one of the few men on the High Council. Savar looked uncomfortable for a different reason; he was here by proxy while another Council member was regenerating. To the Doctor of course the Lady Patience was utter perfection even with the full ceremonial headgear and skullcap; her hair flowed just down the side, he sat next to her while Leela sat beside Dondequest.

Brax took hold of a mallet and banged it down onto the table.

"I Chancellor Braxiatel do herby call this session of the High Council of the Time Lords begun." Brax intoned in time honoured tradition. "Bring forth the Special Envoy."

Through the door lead by two Chancellery Guards was the Monk; he seemed reticent and unsure of himself. The Guards lead him to stand before the Council before Brax turned back to the table.

"I now turn this meeting over to the Madam High President,"

Romana stood every fibre of her being the most powerful in all of creation.

"As President I call the Co-ordinator of the Celestial Intervention Agency, the Lord Doctor of the House of Lungbarrow to speak," Romana sat once more as the Doctor stood, he brushed he frock coat before speaking.

"As of recently the focus of our Intelligence operations has been to ascertain the nature of the Dalek forces," the Doctor pressed a control bringing an image of a bright green planet sprawling with oceans to the screen. "I give you Kembel, under a massive Dalek occupation, as the Monk will tell you has been a vital Dalek stronghold. Since the destruction of Skaro and Davros' efforts to rebuild the Daleks begun on Earth, Kembel has been used for weapons research. Our intelligence suggests that the Dogma Virus was created there and we now have intelligence that suggests the Daleks still have samples of the Apocalypse Element from Etra Prime and are using it for a weapon."

"Very well, Lork Monk please make your report," Romana spoke clearly as she gave the Monk his orders.

"Yes Madam President," the Monk swallowed. "I'm afraid that I have failed, the Dalek Emperor and Davros sent me back to tell you that either Gallifrey will surrender or be destroyed…"

* * *

><p>Deep inside the CIA tower a motor bike roar could be heard, Vansell rushed forward as the motor bike took shape and the Lady Ace climbed off.<p>

"Vansell, is the High Council in session?" she quickly moved forward and headed towards the CIA infinity Chamber.

"Well they've just started why?" Vansell ran after her as she charged in.

"Look it doesn't matter set your sensors to observe Kemble relative dateline Humanian era 4299." Ace bellowed to the technicians.

"Do as she says," Vansell added before turning to Ace. "What did you find there?"

"Sir I'm detecting a massive energy wave spreading through the Vortex!" Vansell immediately moved forward.

"Technician Nivet, what is it?" Vansell vaulted down to the control station.

"I don't know sir!" Nivet screamed in frustration.

"Alert Damon in Time control, and send an alert to the High Council," Vansell roared at the top of his voice. "Raise the Transduction barriers to maximum and direct all power to the Quantum force field."

The room seemed to tingle; every hair on Vansell's body was on its end, every instinct made him want to run for cover.

* * *

><p>Cousin Innocet stood in the garden of the House of Lungbarrow, something wasn't right, as Housekeeper she could sense danger coming. She sent the telepathic signal to all forty five Cousins of the House.<p>

* * *

><p>Something was wrong, everyone in the council chamber seemed to have realised that. Instinct seemed to demand the Doctor to run and hide, then he heard Innocet inside his head, her warning clear.<p>

The double doors crashed open and Damon dashed in, the two Chancellery Guards rushed to stop him.

"Let him pass!" the Doctor ordered, he looked to Leela and Romana seeing them nod their heads in agreement. "Technician, what do you have to report? This is a closed session of the High Council, explain your interruption or you will be placed under arrest."

"Sorry, Doctor… Madam President…" Damon leaned on the table before looking up at them. "Set your feed to show Kembel, Humanian era 4299."

The Doctor complied and brought up the image to see a massive wave front leave the planet in all directions.

"What it it?" Leela asked.

"A wave of energy generated from Apocalypse element reactions," the Doctor said solemnly. "Are the transduction barriers raised?"

Damon nodded, looking around the room the Time Lords were ready to meet whatever would come.

* * *

><p>The Wave hit the transduction barriers with more force than had ever been used against the Time Lords; they flared and stuttered, but held.<p>

The Capitol shook, the sky turned red, radiation leaked through, auroras came over the planet.

Innocet watched the sky and shivered the omens all said that something bad would happen.

The barriers lasted for just under a minute before black spheres of fire rained down on the planet, the fires where charged pieces of the causal nexus itself, mountains cracked and burnt.

A wave of energy ripped through the Capitol, deep in the CIA tower Vansell threw himself over Ace as fires burnt and power conduits, people caught fire around them.

Inside the ring of the citadel between the main residential areas and the Panopticon was the TARDIS cradles, the energy arced from the Transduction generators and into the TARDIS. They began to explode one by one, the cries of their telepathic screams was heard throughout the Capitol.

The Doctor clutched his head as the transmat booth exploded in flames, and then… nothing.

The wave had passed, Romana pulled herself up.

"Co-ordinator, Gallifrey cannot allow such weaponry to be deployed, you are to destroy the emplacement with all necessary force," Romana's tone brokered no argument.


	19. Chapter 13 - Violations of the Laws if T

**Violations of the Laws of Time**

The Warking re-entered the cell and looked to his previous self, the glare had met him from across the hallway.

"Ah, Lord Doctor we have a problem," the Warking sauntered in as the bio membrane closed behind him. "What do you remember of the Last Day?"

"You rescued Narvin from the Dark Tower, shot Matthias and escaped with the Moment, then returned to our ancestral seat at the House of Lungarrow surrounded by the ghosts of our forty-four cousins you killed Narvin and that Commander… I can't seem to remember her name… Then Rassilon transducted in, you fought him. The confrontation that should have happened at the end of the Old Time occurred, _we_ killed Rassilon and then you activated the Moment."

"You this and you that… but _we _killed…" the Warking trailed off, curious. "You disassociate yourself from everything that transpired that day, except for what happened to Rassilon."

The eleventh Doctor screwed his eyes shut in annoyance; he clearly hadn't meant to make the slip.

"So why are you here violating the First Law of Time?" the Doctor asked looking pleased with himself for a barb.

"I saw Innocet,"

With that simple statement the Doctor was speechless, after all Brax didn't count as one of the Cousins of Lungbarrow and Innocet was the only family member who actually loved him at all.

The Doctor's mouth was suddenly dry and his mouth opened and closed, he was speechless, the Doctor had first fled Gallifrey when he informed the Prydonian Cardinal that the House of Lungbarrow had illegally loomed a replacement Cousin leaving Innocet trapped in the House while it rotted for nearly seven centuries.

* * *

><p>The eighth Doctor had herded Sarah, his tenth self and the others into the far corner. Once they were all there he pulled out a sliver of metal.<p>

"A statenheim remote!" the tenth Doctor called out in surprise. "I've always wanted one!"

"Yeah well…" the eighth Doctor shrugged and smiled as he closed his eyes and the TARDIS took form in front of them. The six time travelers entered the time ship, all but two unsure as to what they'd find. They'd all seen the different versions the Doctor could use, but that didn't prepare them for the warehouse sized steampunk heaven they found themselves in.

They passed through the massive double door and looked up to see the Seal of Rassilon overlooking them, at the side of the doors the wall was marble with Greek-esque columns. The walls were lined with cabinets and bookshelves, there was another level to the room to the left of the centre was a single armchair with a table and bowl of jelly babies, a bit further on was a table on which rested a gramophone and at the centre of the room was the TARDIS control console. Hexagonal, wooden and covered in switches and flashing lights, a blue glass cylinder contained the Time Rotor, this lead into a metal cage joining six heavy metal girders that enclosed the console and the raised dais it stood on. On the far wall was a massive portrait showing forty five people, in the painting was one individual that Jack recognised.

"Doctor, who is that a painting of?" at Jack's question the tenth Doctor fell silent and gazed at the floor while the eighth Doctor put his hand into his pockets and stood beside him.

"That is the family portrait of the 423rd generation of the House of Lungbarrow, my own family," the Doctor's tone implied mixed feelings. "Innocet was the only one who ever loved me, well I suppose Quences did in his own way, Arkhew seemed pretty ambivalent but the rest of them hated me…"

Trailing off the Doctor returned to his other self at the console, pressing buttons in a calm and controlled manner he pulled down an old fashioned television set.

"Ah ha!" the eighth Doctor called. "Doctor, would you say that this is the Captain's time trace?"

"Yep" the tenth Doctor popped his 'p'.

"Right, there's nothing we can do here, but if we return to the present we'll know what we'll find," the eighth Doctor began pressing controls as the Time rotor moved up and down the eighth Doctor smiled and headed to his armchair. "Anyone for tea?"

* * *

><p>They'd been silent for hours, Mace sat in the middle as the two versions of the same Time Lord paced the cell, thankfully the silence was interrupted when the noise of TARDIS engines filled the room. The two Time Lords looked in shock as a blue box begun to take shape, once it'd materialised fully Sarah, Mickey, Martha, Jack and the eighth and tenth Doctors came out, the eighth Doctor held a large leather tool chest.<p>

"Okay that's interesting…" the eighth Doctor had caught sight of the Warking, the two versions of the same incarnation stood before each other. "Do either of you know why we're all together?"

A haunted expression passed before the Warking's eyes, facing his future self was one thing, but facing a version of himself from before the war was another, it took all of the Warking's willpower not to break down and tell the eighth Doctor all he needed to stop the war before it began. Time's to be there for Romana so Gallifrey stayed strong, prevent the Pandora Devastation, not to go to the Nekkastani ship in the vortex and inadvertently rescue Davros allowing him to rebuild the Dalek race after it'd been destroyed with Skaro.

"No," the Warking grated out, though none of his other selves believed him.

"Well, this is one hell of a violation of the First Law of Time," the eighth Doctor idly said as he began to open the tool bag. After some rummaging he pulled out a strange device with a tube on the end.

"Doctor, what is that?" Colonel Mace asked.

"A molecular phase disrupter," the tenth Doctor said in response. As the eighth Doctor moved to the edge of the bio membrane and began to slice at the strands.

"Why aren't we getting into the TARDIS to leave?" Jack was looking around is the eleventh and tenth Doctor's were having a little council of war while the Warking had entered the TARDIS and returned with a sword with which he began to cut areas his predecessor had weakened.

"This ship is controlled by Zygons and is being used as a colony ship, but eventually they'll want to settle a planet like Earth and I can't let that happen." It was the tenth incarnation who had spoken.

"_There are two of the you__'__s to come, ask them,__"_the Warking could see _her_ again. Innocet leant on the wall next to him, she looked to the later Doctors.

"Did you ever count how many newly loomed cousins were on Gallifrey?" the Warking stopped to look at his future selves.

"I have absolutely no idea," the eleventh version said as he walked away from his tenth incarnation who was already giving a glare that would have killed him over and over again.

"How old are you know?" the Warking began to advance on him.

"I'd say 1,200 years or so, but more likely 6,000 odd give or take a few centuries," eleven admitted.

"A few hundred years then and in all that time you never once counted, not ever," the Warking was furious now.

"115,392" the tenth Doctor said a cold glare of hatred directed against his elder self. "The Bureau of Loomographic records is available to our TARDIS as a Presidential privilege. How could you forget something like that?!"

"I moved on," the eleventh Doctor said back with as much venom as he could.

"Where, where can you me now that you can forget something like that!?"

"Spoilers…"

"No, stuff the First Law or whatever childish way of saying it you've got, I want to know why you can forget something like that!?"

"_I don__'__t know who you are,__"_everyone in the room turned to look at the younger version of the eighth Doctor who'd stopped cutting them out during the argument. "Either of you I haven't the faintest idea, and you Warking, what about the Matrix, why couldn't you save anyone?"

The two versions of the same incarnation once more faced each over.

"Rassilon locked the Matrix in a loop, the data was irretrievable, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to do anything without Narvin's access codes…" the Warking trailed off.

"Brax…Innocet…Patience?" the eighth Doctor asked his eyes filled with fear and loss. "And has it happened yet?"

"First Law of Time," the Warking said before he turned back to the others.

"Then you can stop it," they all turned to look at the eleventh Doctor.

"What?" it was the eighth Doctor who had spoken.

"I thought that history couldn't be changed?" Sarah asked as the others tried to stay out of the brewing argument.

"Time can be rewritten," eleven said in an offhand manner, only to be met by the fury of all three of his past incarnations.

"WHAT!"

"No it can't,"

"How dare you," however the most resounding was the Warking's low voice dripping with menace and anger. "How dare you, you can't rewrite time, not one line. You don't have the right."

"How dare you, you destroyed Gallifrey," Eleven shouted back looking to his other selves for support yet receiving none.

"You are a Time Lord; you have responsibilities, whatever you say about the Last Day, I was the Time Lord when none of our people could remember what that meant. It was up to you to enforce the laws and protect eternity not meddle with it!" the Warking seemed to be drawing in break ready to say something even greater.

"Isn't that what we've always done?" Eleven asked hopefully.

"No," the eighth Doctor stepped forward. "As a matter of fact we've always enforced the Laws, by preventing history from changing and maintaining its natural flow. We never willingly break them."

"I concur," the tenth Doctor spoke and looked at his feet.

"As Ordinal-General, I the Lord Doctor 423rd of the Brotherhood of Kithriarchs of the House of Lungbarrow do hereby excommunicate you from the House of Lungbarrow." The Warking stepped forward to finish his judgement. "You now have no family, and no protection, while still a Lord of the Prydonian Chapter you no longer have any cousins."

* * *

><p>Time Lord Character List and recommended reading.<p>

Arla - OC, one of Clara's echoes as seen in Invasion Of Time and Arc Of Infinity

Narvin - As heard in the Gallifrey audio series he was initially a diehard conservative but has become Romana's staunchest supporter.

Romana - Former companion to the Doctor and President of Gallifrey, for information see Gallifrey audio series

Matthias - see Gallifrey audio series.

Darkel- Inquisitor in Trial Of A Time Lord and Gallifrey audio series.

Rassilon

Patience - See novel Cold Fusion

Maxil- See The Arc of Infinity

Brax- Irving Braxiatel, see Gallifrey Audio series and Virgin New Adventures

Salyavin – See Shada audio adaptation.

Rani – See Time and the Rani

Magnus – See the War Games and Timewyrm Exodus

Neeloc – See Gallifrey Insurgency

Thalia – See The Arc of Infinity

Janaetis- See Gallifrey audio series

Ruatha – See VNA Blood Harvest and VMA Goth Opera

Innocet – See VNA Lungbarrow

Vansell – See Audio stories from Big Finish

Damon – The Arc of Infinity


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